Information processing system, information processing apparatus, and image processing apparatus for performing collection and aggregate calculation of operation history data about the image processing apparatus

ABSTRACT

An information processing system includes a reading device configured to perform reading processing for reading an original, and one or more controllers configured to function as an acquisition unit that acquires a number of processing operations per unit time period of the reading processing, and an acquisition unit that acquires operation rate information about the reading device based on the number of processing operations per unit time period of the reading processing and a predetermined number of processing operations of the reading processing.

BACKGROUND Field of the Disclosure

Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to an informationprocessing system using an image processing apparatus including an imageforming device which forms an image on a sheet or a reading device whichreads an original and, more particularly, to an information processingsystem which performs collection and aggregate calculation of operationhistory data about the image processing apparatus. The informationprocessing system is used as a printer, a facsimile (FAX) apparatus, ascanner, and a multifunction peripheral including their functions.

Description of the Related Art

Heretofore, there has been known a service which analyzes an operationstatus of an image forming apparatus, such as a printer, a copyingmachine, or a multifunction peripheral, installed at a customer and, forexample, proposes selection of a model suitable for the customer'senvironment and a manner of operation thereof based on a result of theanalysis. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-65438 discussesa technique to calculate, as information available for analysis of theoperation status, an operation time by obtaining a job execution timefrom the time of start of a job to the time of end thereof.

Moreover, the Ministry of the Environment's guideline sets forth amethod of obtaining an operation rate of, for example, a printer ormultifunction peripheral as follows with regard to a method that isbased on the number of output sheets:Operation rate=(Monthly number of output sheets)/(Number of outputsheets per minute×60 minutes×7 hours×20 days).

Here, as the number of output sheets per minute, for example, a ratedvalue set forth in a brochure of the applicable apparatus is used.Moreover, the terms “60 minutes×7 hours×20 days” are presumed to bevalues associated with approximate actual working hours. In the case ofproviding a service that is based on an operation rate to variousmodels, it is desirable not to calculate the operation rate with aunique method such as that discussed in Japanese Patent ApplicationLaid-Open No. 2011-65438 but to, in consideration of the compatibilityof information, calculate the operation rate with a method that is basedon the number of output sheets in line with the Ministry of theEnvironment's guideline.

The method of calculation of an operation rate set forth in the Ministryof the Environment's guideline has room for improvement in variousissues.

The first example of an issue for improvement is that, although thenumber of print processing operations is taken into account, the numberof original reading processing operations is not taken into account. Inthese days when there are growing calls for digitization of documents,the usage frequency of functions of storing an image read from anoriginal and attaching such an image to an e-mail is becoming higher.Therefore, in an information processing system using a copying machineor a multifunction peripheral, it is desirable to obtain an operationrate that is based on the number of original reading processingoperations with a method similar to the method of calculation of anoperation rate that is based on the number of print processingoperations by reference to the Ministry of the Environment's guideline.

The second example of an issue for improvement is that the actualworking hours are associated with only approximate values. The reasonfor this is that the above-mentioned values are based on the premisethat the apparatus is operating normally and a time period in which theapparatus is unavailable due to, for example, a malfunction thereof isnot taken into account. Usually, while, as the operation rate of anapparatus is higher, an index indicating the need for usage being higheris obtained, the operation rate calculated in the above-mentioned methodmay take a lower value without regard for the need for usage when theapparatus is malfunctioning. Therefore, in the case of using anoperation rate calculated in the above-mentioned method, the informationprocessing system may not be able to provide an appropriate service tothe user.

The third example of an issue for improvement is that, since a value setforth in a brochure is assumed to be used as the number of outputsheets, a case of using a processing speed different from the standardspeed is not taken into account. For example, there is a case where,depending on a type of paper, such as the size or thickness of paper foruse in printing, or a special layout setting, such as bookbinding,printing is performed at a processing speed set lower than a ratedvalue. In this way, in a printer in which printing was performed a largenumber of times at a processing speed set lower than the rated value,although, actually, the printer has been operating for a long time, theapparent operation rate may decrease. Accordingly, in the case of usingan operation rate calculated in the above-mentioned method, theinformation processing system may not be able to provide an appropriateservice to the user.

SUMMARY

An aspect of the present disclosure is generally directed to providingan information processing system capable of acquiring an appropriateoperation rate.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is generally directed toproviding an information processing system capable of acquiring anoperation rate based on the number of original reading processingoperations.

Yet another aspect of the present disclosure is generally directed toproviding an information processing system capable of acquiring anoperation rate obtained with a downtime of an apparatus taken intoaccount.

Still yet another aspect of the present disclosure is generally directedto providing an information processing system capable of acquiring anoperation rate associated with a type of image formation.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, an informationprocessing system includes a reading device configured to performreading processing for reading an original, and one or more controllersconfigured to function as an acquisition unit that acquires a number ofprocessing operations per unit time period of the reading processing,and an acquisition unit that acquires operation rate information aboutthe reading device based on the number of processing operations per unittime period of the reading processing and a predetermined number ofprocessing operations of the reading processing.

Further features of the present disclosure will become apparent from thefollowing description of exemplary embodiments with reference to theattached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the whole of aninformation processing system according to one or more aspects of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a software configuration of amultifunction peripheral (MFP) according to one or more aspects of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a software configuration of a serveraccording to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are explanatory diagrams illustrating examples ofnotification events which are transmitted from the MFP to the serveraccording to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating event processing which the MFPperforms according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating processing which the server performsaccording to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating examples of operation rates which theserver displays according to one or more aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram illustrating examples of notificationevents which are transmitted from the MFP to the server according to oneor more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating processing which the server performsaccording to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating examples of operation rates which theserver displays according to one or more aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 11A is a diagram illustrating examples of notification events whichare transmitted from the MFP to the server according to one or moreaspects of the present disclosure. FIG. 11B is a diagram illustratingexamples of notification events which are transmitted from the MFP tothe server according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.FIG. 11C is a diagram illustrating examples of notification events whichare transmitted from the MFP to the server according to one or moreaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating event processing which the MFPperforms according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating processing which the server performsaccording to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating examples of operation rates which theserver displays according to one or more aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram illustrating examples of notificationevents which are transmitted from the MFP to the server according to oneor more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating processing which the server performsaccording to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating examples of effective operation rateswhich the server displays according to one or more aspects of thepresent disclosure.

FIGS. 18A and 18B are explanatory diagrams illustrating examples ofnotification events which are transmitted from the MFP to the serveraccording to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustrating processing which the server performsaccording to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating examples of operation informationwhich the server displays according to one or more aspects of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 21 is an explanatory diagram illustrating examples of notificationevents which are transmitted from the MFP to the server according to oneor more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart illustrating processing which the server performsaccording to one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating examples of operation informationwhich the server displays according to one or more aspects of thepresent disclosure.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Various exemplary embodiments, features, and aspects of the disclosurewill be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.Furthermore, the scope of the present disclosure is not limited toconfigurations described in exemplary embodiments. Alterations such assubstitution of a part of each configuration with an equivalent thereofand omission of a part of each processing can be performed within arange in which similar advantageous effects are able to be attained.

<Information Processing System>

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the whole of aninformation processing system according to a first exemplary embodiment.In the information processing system illustrated in FIG. 1 , a server1120 and a multifunction peripheral (MFP) 1100 are interconnected insuch a way as to be able to communicate with each other via a networksuch as a local area network (LAN) 1130. In the first exemplaryembodiment, the MFP 1100 stores log information in association withexecution of a job, and transmits the stored log information to theserver 1120. The server 1120 performs calculation of an operation rateabout the MFP 1100 based on the received log information. Informationabout the calculated operation rate is used to provide various servicessuch as a maintenance service for apparatuses and a selection servicefor an alternate model.

<MFP 1100>

The MFP 1100 is an image processing apparatus capable of performingvarious processing operations related to images. The MFP 1100 functionsas an image forming apparatus, which forms an image on a sheet, and alsofunctions as an image reading apparatus, which reads an original toacquire an image. The MFP 1100 includes a scanner 112, a printer 113, anoperation unit 111, and a controller unit 100.

The controller unit 100 is a control unit which performs various controloperations while communicating with the operation unit 111, the scanner112, and the printer 113. The controller unit 100 includes a centralprocessing unit (CPU) 101, a random access memory (RAM) 102, a read-onlymemory (ROM) 103, a hard disk drive (HDD) 104, an operation unitinterface (I/F) 105, a network V/F 106, a scanner I/F 107 a printer I/F108, and a facsimile (FAX) unit 109. These components are interconnectedin such a way as to be able to communicate with each other via a systembus 110.

The CPU 101 is a processing unit which performs various informationprocessing operations such as execution of a control program. The CPU101 starts up the MFP 1100 based on a boot program stored in the ROM103. Moreover, the CPU 101 reads out a control program stored in the HDD104 and uses the RAM 102 as a work area.

The HDD 104 stores various control programs including functions such ascopying and printing, and also stores data read from the scanner 112.

The operation unit I/F 105 performs data input and output communicationcontrol with respect to the operation unit 111.

The network I/F 106 is connected to the LAN 1130 and performs input andoutput control of information via the LAN 1130.

The scanner I/F 107 receives, as an input, image data from the scanner112 and performs inputting and outputting of scanner control data.

The printer I/F 108 outputs image data to the printer 113 and performsinputting and outputting of printer control data.

The FAX unit 109 performs transmission and reception of facsimile datavia a telephone line 1131.

The operation unit 111 is an interface which includes an input device,such as a touch panel or hardware keys, and a display device, such as aliquid crystal display (LCD) or a light-emitting diode (LED), andperforms inputting of an instruction from the user and displaying ofinformation to the user.

The scanner 112 is a reading device which includes an optical readingdevice, such as a charge-coupled device (CCD) sensor, and has thefunction of optically scanning and reading a paper medium to acquireelectronic image data (being able to perform reading processing).Moreover, the scanner 112 has the function of causing an automaticdocument feeder (ADF) to automatically feed a stack of paper documentsplaced on a document tray on a sheet-by-sheet basis to the opticalreading device and discharging each document sheet after completion ofdocument reading. The number of document sheets which are able to beread by the ADF per minute is previously determined as a rated speed ofthe ADF. Usually, the ADF has two types of rated speeds including aspeed for performing reading as a monochrome document and a speed forperforming reding as a color document.

The printer 113 is an image forming device (printing device) having thefunction of forming electronic image data as an image on a recordingmedium such as a sheet of paper (being able to perform image formingprocessing). The number of sheets of a recording medium which are ableto be used for printing per minute is previously determined as a ratedspeed for the printer 113. Usually, the printer 113 has two types ofrated speeds including a speed for performing printing as a monochromeimage and a speed for performing printing as a color image. Usually, therated speed of the printer 113 represents the number of sheets which areable to be used for printing when printing is performed on sheets of thestandard paper size and paper type. In a case where printing isperformed on sheets of the size larger than the standard paper size, thenumber of sheets which are able to be used for printing per minutebecomes smaller than the number of sheets which are able to be used forprinting at the rated speed. Additionally, in a case where printing isperformed on sheets of a special type, such as thick paper or thinpaper, the printing speed may be set lower so as to completely fix theentire image such as a toner image to each sheet or prevent any smudgeof each sheet. Therefore, the number of sheets which are able to be usedfor printing per minute may become smaller than the number of sheetswhich are able to be used for printing at the rated speed.

Moreover, the MFP 1100 has a send function which transmits image dataread by the scanner 112 to another information processing apparatusthrough a network via the network I/F 106 according to a transmissionprotocol such as e-mail or Server Message Block (SMB). Additionally, theMFP 1100 has a print function which receives electronic image data froman information processing apparatus such as a personal computer (PC)through a network via the LAN 1130 and causes the printer 113 to printthe received electronic document. Besides, the MFP 1100 has, forexample, a FAX transfer function, a box storage function, and a boxdocument transmission function. The FAX transfer function is a functionof performing data transfer of image data for facsimile received by theFAX unit 109 via the telephone line 1131 to another informationprocessing apparatus via the network I/F 106. The box storage functionis a function of receiving image data from an information processingapparatus such as a PC via a network and storing the received image datain the HDD 104. The box document transmission function is a function oftransmitting image data stored in the HDD 104 to another informationprocessing apparatus through a network via the network VF 106 accordingto the above-mentioned transmission protocol such as e-mail or SMB.

In this way, the MFP 1100 receives or acquires pieces of image data ofvarious forms via, for example, the scanner 112, the network I/F 106,and the FAX unit 109. Additionally, the MFP 1100 is able to performprocessing operations such as printing by the printer 113, transmissionto another apparatus via the network I/F 106, and storing in the HDD104.

Moreover, when having performed processing such as copying or printing,the MFP 1100 stores, for example, a result of execution of theprocessing as log information in the HDD 104.

The log information stored in the HDD 104 is transmitted to an apparatuslocated outside the MFP 1100 via the network I/F 106 immediately afterexecution of the processing or at intervals of a predetermined time.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a software configuration of the MFP1100. These pieces of software included in the MFP 1100 are stored inany of the RAM 102, the ROM 103, and the HDD 104, and are executed bythe CPU 101. Moreover, in the MFP 1100, pieces of software whichimplement scanning, printing, and various functions using a network ormemory storage operate.

The operation unit I/F 105 has been described above as a hardwareconfiguration, but is illustrated in FIG. 2 as a control programthereof. The operation unit I/F 105 has the function of displaying ascreen via which the user performs an operation on the operation unit111 or communicating, to function applications 207, the content of anoperation which the user has performed.

The function applications 207 are software which causes functions, suchas copying, printing, send, and FAX transmission and reception, tooperate and includes a plurality of function applications for therespective functions.

Such a plurality of function applications is triggered by, for example,an instruction from the user via the operation unit 111 or a datareception via a network such as the LAN 1130 to cause applicationfunctions to operate.

A job control unit 205 receives a job execution instruction from thefunction applications 207 and then controls the scanner 112 or theprinter 113 via the scanner/F 107 or the printer I/F 108 to performscanning or printing.

An error control unit 206 mainly receives a notification of an abnormalstate occurring at, for example, the job control unit 205, the printer113, or the scanner 112 and performs control such as stopping of thewhole system or giving an instruction for a degeneracy operation.

A history setting holding unit 208 manages non-volatile information suchas operation histories or various setting values in the MFP 1100.

The history setting holding unit 208 holds settings required for controlof the MFP 1100 and control for execution of a job and stores, forexample, an operation history of the user, a result of execution of ajob, and any occurrence of an error. The substance of the non-volatileinformation is held in the HDD 104.

A network communication unit 201 performs transmission and reception ofinformation via a network such as the LAN 1130 with respect to theserver 1120.

First, the network communication unit 201 receives a setting for eventnotification from the server 1120. The setting for event notification isan instruction indicating what type of event information is to becommunicated from the MFP 1100 to the server 1120. Specifically, theinstruction indicates an event information type such as eventinformation concerning job execution or event information concerningerror.

Upon receiving the setting for event notification, the networkcommunication unit 201 stores the received setting for eventnotification in a notification setting holding unit 203 via anotification setting acquisition unit 202. The event notificationsetting is stored as a file in the HDD 104 serving as the notificationsetting holding unit 203. Information to be stored in the notificationsetting holding unit 203 is a content indicating what event to transmitamong phenomena which occur in the MFP 1100 and are able to be convertedinto events.

When the MFP 1100 has been started up or when a notification of changeof an event notification setting stored in the notification settingholding unit 203 has been received via the notification settingacquisition unit 202, an event setting unit 204 performs acquisitionsetting of an event designated to be communicated as a notification withrespect to each control unit and application. Thus, the event settingunit 204 performs settings to cause the operation unit I/F 105 and eachof function modules including the job control unit 205 to the historysetting holding unit 208 to communicate a notification of an eventconcerning the received acquisition notification.

An event collection unit 209 receives an event from each function moduleto which acquisition of an event has been set, selects and adds eventinformation to the event, then performs shaping of data about suchinformation, and stores the shaped data as event notification data in amessage buffer 210. An example of the content of the event notificationdata is described below.

The message buffer 210 stores event notification data as a file storedin the HDD 104.

An event transmission unit 211 detects that event notification data hasbeen written into the message buffer 210, reads out the eventnotification data, and transmits the event notification data to theserver 1120 via the network communication unit 201. At this time, theevent transmission unit 211 can transmit event notification data storedin the message buffer 210 each time the event notification data has beenwritten into the message buffer 210 or can collectively transmit piecesof event notification data after the pieces of event notification datahave been written up to a given degree of size.

<Server 1120>

The server 1120 is connected to the MFP 1100 via a network such as theLAN 1130, and is an information processing apparatus which requests alog from the MFP 1100 and receives the log therefrom. The server 1120includes a control unit 120, an operation display unit 128, and anoperation input unit 129.

The control unit 120 includes a CPU 121, which executes various controlprograms, and controls an operation of the entire server 1120. Thecontrol unit 120 includes the CPU 121, a RAM 122, a ROM 123, an HDD 124,an operation unit I/F 125, and a network I/F 126. Such components areinterconnected in such a way as to be able to communicate with eachother via a system bus 127.

The CPU 121 reads out a control program stored in the ROM 123 or the HDD124, and performs predetermined processing with the RAM 122 used as awork area.

The HDD 124 stores various control programs such as an aggregatecalculation control program for transmission logs received from the MFP1100. Moreover, the HDD 124 also stores information about apparatusescorresponding to a plurality of MFPs 1100.

The network I/F 126 performs input and output control of information viathe LAN 1130.

The operation unit I/F 125 performs communication control for outputtingdata to the operation display unit 128 and communication control forinputting data from the operation input unit 129.

The operation display unit 128 is an interface for displaying to theuser, and includes a display device such as an LCD or LED.

The operation input unit 129 is an interface for inputting aninstruction from the user, and includes an input device such as akeyboard and a mouse.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a software configuration of the server1120. These pieces of software included in the server 1120 are stored inany of the RAM 122, the ROM 123, and the HDD 124 and are executed by theCPU 121.

A network communication unit 301 performs transmission and reception ofinformation with respect to the MFP 1100 via a network such as the LAN1130. Moreover, the network communication unit 301 transmits informationabout settings for the respective event notification types to the MFP1100.

A data shaping unit 302 interprets the content of event informationreceived from the MFP 1100 via the network communication unit 301, thenshapes such data, and stores the shaped data in an acquired data storageunit 303. Moreover, in a case where the received event information isinformation related to devices of the MFP 1100, the data shaping unit302 stores device IDs for identifying the respective devices as well asthe shaped data in the device information storage unit 304.

The acquired data storage unit 303 stores respective pieces of eventinformation received from a plurality of MFPs 1100.

A device information storage unit 304 stores information related todevices received from a plurality of MFPs 1100. The information relatedto devices includes a rated print speed and a rated scan speed of theMFP 1100. The device information about the MFP 1100 does not necessarilyneed to be received from the MFP 1100 but can be data input via theoperation input unit 129 as long as it is information which is uniquelydetermined by, for example, a device type.

A data analysis unit 305 aggregates and analyzes data at analysis timingcommunicated from a timer control unit 308 based on data stored in theacquired data storage unit 303 and the device information storage unit304, thus calculating analysis data such as operation rates of devices.Additionally, the data analysis unit 305 stores the calculated analysisdata in an analysis data storage unit 306.

The analysis data storage unit 306 stores various pieces of data such asoperation rates of devices calculated by the data analysis unit 305.

A data display unit 307 acquires analysis data stored in the analysisdata storage unit 306, shapes the analysis data, and then displays theshaped analysis data on, for example, the operation display unit 128.

The timer control unit 308 acquires data about, for example, an analysisinterval stored in an aggregated information storage unit 309, andissues an instruction to the data analysis unit 305 to perform analysisat every analysis interval.

The aggregated information storage unit 309 stores informationindicating at what degree of time interval the data analysis unit 305analyzes the received acquired data. Usually, the aggregated informationstorage unit 309 stores a value indicating every month or every threemonths.

Moreover, the aggregated information storage unit 309 also storesinformation identifying MFPs 1100 targeted for aggregate calculation andanalysis target data types indicating what information to analysis abouteach MFP 1100, i.e., what information to acquire from each MFP 1100.

A notification data generation unit 310 generates designation data fordesignating the type of event information which the MFP 1100communicates to the server 1120, from the analysis target data typesstored in the aggregated information storage unit 309. Additionally, thenotification data generation unit 310 instructs the networkcommunication unit 301 to transmit the event type designation data tothe target MFP 1100.

<Notification Events>

FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams schematically illustrating example ofnotification events which are transmitted from the MFP 1100 to theserver 1120. Here, two types of notification events among thenotification events which are transmitted from the MFP 1100 to theserver 1120 are described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 4B.

FIG. 4A illustrates examples of notification events which are recordedwhen various types of jobs have been completed in the MFP 1100 and aretransmitted to the server 1120. While an actual notification event isdata which is transmitted in a format such as JavaScript Object Notation(JSON) or Extensible Markup Language (XML), here, for ease ofexplanation, the content of data is expressed in tabular form. Each rowrepresents one notification event.

An information column “event name” 401 represents the name of an eventwhich is transmitted. A “JobCompleted” event is an event indicating thecompletion of a job. This is one of events which are transmitted when atransmission request for information about a job has been received fromthe server 1120. While, actually, an event indicating the start of a jobis also transmitted, the description thereof is omitted here.

An information column “device ID” 402 represents an identifier (ID) foruniquely identifying a device such as the MFP 1100.

An information column “occurrence time” 403 represents the time ofoccurrence of a phenomenon in the applicable event. In this case, thetime of occurrence is almost the same as the time of completion of a jobrepresented by the applicable event.

An information column “job ID” 404 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a job in the same device.

Usually, the job ID is a numerical value which is incremented by one foreach execution of a job.

An information column “job type” 405 represents the type of a job, suchas copy, print, and send.

An information column “print color mode” 406 represents with which ofcolor and monochrome printing has been performed in the case of a jobaccompanied by printing (print job, print processing, or image formingprocessing).

An information column “number of printed sheets” 407 represents thenumber of actually printed sheets (the number of processing operationsperformed for print processing), which is incremented in the case of ajob accompanied by printing.

An information column “scan color mode” 408 represents with which ofcolor and monochrome scanning has been performed in the case of a jobaccompanied by scanning (scan job or reading processing).

An information column “number of scanned pages” 409 represents thenumber of actually scanned pages (the number of processing operationsperformed for read processing), which is incremented in the case of ajob accompanied by scanning.

In this way, the information column 402 to the information column 409enable knowing information such as the number of printed sheets and thenumber of scanned pages concerning each job. For example, in the eventof No. 1, the notification event enables knowing the MFP 1100 hasexecuted a copy job, has read an original of two pages in color, and hasperformed printing in color on ten sheets of paper. While suchinformation added to each event includes, besides the information column402 to the information column 409, various pieces of information about ajob, the description thereof is omitted here.

Data about the notification event illustrated in FIG. 4A is communicatedby the job control unit 205 to the event collection unit 209, issubjected to data shaping, and is then communicated to the server 1120via the event transmission unit 211. In the server 1120, upon receivingthis event, the data shaping unit 302 discriminates the event and thenstores the event in the acquired data storage unit 303. Moreover, thedata analysis unit 305 performs filtering of data stored in the acquireddata storage unit 303 based on information in the information column“device ID” 402, and further performs filtering of only jobs in aspecific time period based on information in the information column“occurrence time” 403. Adding the numbers of printed sheets and thenumbers of scanned pages together in the data obtained by performingfiltering enables obtaining the sum of numbers of printed sheets andnumbers of scanned pages in the specific time period.

FIG. 4B illustrates examples of notification events which areperiodically recorded concerning device information about the MFP 1100and are then transmitted to the server 1120. Again, while an actualnotification event is also data which is transmitted in a format such asJSON or XML, here, for ease of explanation, the content of data isexpressed in tabular form. Moreover, each row represents onenotification event.

An information column “event name” 411 represents the name of an eventwhich is transmitted.

A “BasicInfoSnapshotted” event is an event which is periodicallytransmitted about basic information about each device. This is one ofevents which are transmitted when a transmission request for informationconcerning device information about devices has been received from theserver 1120. While, actually, besides, an event indicating a change ofthe device information is also transmitted, the description thereof isomitted here.

An information column “device ID” 412 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a device such as the MFP 1100.

An information column “occurrence time” 413 represents the time ofoccurrence of a phenomenon in the applicable event. In this case, thetime of occurrence is the time at which the device information wasinternally acquired, which occurs periodically.

An information column “printer type” 414 represents the type of aprinter included in a device such as the MFP 1100, and indicates one ofa color printer and a monochrome printer.

An information column “rated number of color printed sheets” 415represents the rated number of color printed sheets which are able to beoutput per minute in a case where the printer is a color printer.

An information column “rated number of monochrome printed sheets” 416represents the rated number of monochrome printed sheets which are ableto be output per minute by the printer.

An information column “scanner type” 417 represents the type of ascanner in a case where the device includes the scanner, and indicatesone of a color scanner and a monochrome scanner.

An information column “rated number of color scanned pages” 418represents the rated number of color scanned pages which are able to beread per minute by a color scanner in a case where the device includesthe color scanner.

An information column “rated number of monochrome scanned pages” 419represents the rated number of monochrome scanned pages which are ableto be read per minute by a scanner in a case where the device includesthe scanner.

In this way, the information column 412 to the information column 419 ofthis event enable knowing information such as the rated number ofprinted sheets and the rated number of scanned pages concerning a devicesuch as the MFP 1100. While such information added to each eventincludes, besides the information column 412 to the information column419, various pieces of information about a device, the descriptionthereof is omitted here.

With regard to data about notification events illustrated in FIG. 4B,one of the function applications 207 periodically acquires deviceinformation at a previously designated time interval and communicatesthe acquired device information to the event collection unit 209. Theevent collection unit 209 transmits this notification event to theserver 1120 via the event transmission unit 211.

In the server 1120, upon receiving this event, the data shaping unit 302discriminates the event and then stores the event in the deviceinformation storage unit 304. Moreover, the data analysis unit 305performs filtering of data stored in the device information storage unit304 based on information in the information column “device ID” 412, andthen acquires the latest information based on information in theinformation column “occurrence time” 413, thus acquiring the latestinformation about the device.

<Processing Flow of MFP 1100>

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating event processing which the MFP 1100performs in the first exemplary embodiment. Each step in the flowchartof FIG. 5 is processed by the CPU 101 executing a control program storedin the HDD 104. Thus, each processing is performed by the controllerunit 100. Here, transmission processing for a notification event whichthe MFP 1100 performs is described in detail, and the reception of anotification event request from the server 1120 and the setting thereofare omitted from description.

First, in step S501, the event collection unit 209 waits for receptionof an internal event from an internal function module.

Next, in step S502, the event collection unit 209 determines whether aninternal event for a transmission processing target has been receivedfrom an internal function module. Specifically, the event collectionunit 209 determines, based on information about a transmission targetevent stored in the notification setting holding unit 203, whether thereceived event is an internal event corresponding to the transmissiontarget event. If it is determined that the internal event has not beenreceived (NO in step S502), the event collection unit 209 returns theprocessing to step S501.

If, in step S502, it is determined that an internal event for atransmission processing target has been received from an internalfunction module (YES in step S502), then in step S503, the eventcollection unit 209 determines whether the received internal event is ajob ending event. If it is determined that the received internal eventis not a job ending event (NO in step S503), the controller unit 100advances the processing to step S505.

If, in step S503, it is determined that the received internal event is ajob ending event (YES in step S503), then in step S504, the controllerunit 100 acquires information about a job and generates a transmissionevent. Specifically, the controller unit 100 acquires informationequivalent to the information column of a JobCompleted event illustratedin FIG. 4A from, for example, an information column about a job added tothe internal event or information stored in the history setting holdingunit 208. Additionally, the controller unit 100 shapes the acquiredinformation into a data format of the JobCompleted event, and stores thegenerated JobCompleted event as a file in the message buffer 210. Here,the event collection unit 209 previously stores a setting as to anending event of what job type to generate as a transmission event.Alternatively, a method of receiving a designation of a job type fromthe server 1120, storing such information in the notification settingholding unit 203, and generating a transmission event of the designatedjob type based on such information can be employed.

Next, in step S505, the event collection unit 209 determines whether thereceived internal event is a timing event for device informationtransmission. If it is determined that the received internal event isnot a timing event for device information transmission (NO in stepS505), the controller unit 100 advances the processing to step S507.

If, in step S505, it is determined that the received internal event is atiming event for device information transmission (YES in step S505),then in step S506, the controller unit 100 acquires information about adevice and generates a transmission event. Specifically, the controllerunit 100 acquires information equivalent to the information column of aBasicInfoSnapshotted event illustrated in FIG. 4B from, for example, thefunction applications 207 or the history setting holding unit 208.Additionally, the controller unit 100 shapes the acquired informationinto a data format of the BasicInfoSnapshotted event, and stores thegenerated BasicInfoSnapshotted event as a file in the message buffer210.

Next, in step S507, the event transmission unit 211 transmits thetransmission event stored in the message buffer 210 to the server 1120via the network communication unit 201.

After that, in step S508, the event collection unit 209 determineswhether the event transmission processing itself to the server 1120 hasended. Specifically, the event collection unit 209 determines whetherthere is a transmission target event in the notification setting holdingunit 203. In a case where there is no transmission target event in thenotification setting holding unit 203, the event collection unit 209determines that the event transmission processing itself has ended (YESin step S508), and then ends a series of processing. In a case wherethere is a transmission target event, the event collection unit 209determines that the event transmission processing is still continuing(NO in step S508), and the controller unit 100 then returns theprocessing to step S501.

In this way, transmission events such as those illustrated in FIGS. 4Aand 4B are communicated from the MFP 1100 to the server 1120.

<Processing Flow of Server 1120>

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating processing which the server 1120performs in the first exemplary embodiment. Each step in the flowchartof FIG. 6 is processed by the CPU 121 executing a control program storedin the HDD 124. Thus, each processing is performed by the control unit120. Here, reception of an event and analysis processing of data whichthe server 1120 performs are described in detail.

First, in step S601, the data analysis unit 305 instructs the aggregatedinformation storage unit 309 to acquire data about intervals of dataaggregate calculation and analysis and instructs the timer control unit308 to communicate analysis timing at every such interval. Additionally,the notification data generation unit 310 generates, from analysistarget data information stored in the aggregated information storageunit 309, an event notification request to the MFP 1100, and transmitsthe event notification request to the MFP 1100 via the networkcommunication unit 301.

Next, in step S602, the data shaping unit 302 and the data analysis unit305 wait for reception of a transmission event from the MFP 1100 andreception of an analysis timing event from the timer control unit 308.

Additionally, in step S603, the control unit 120 determines whether thetransmission event from the MFP 1100 or the analysis timing event fromthe timer control unit 308 has been received. If it is determined thatno event has been received (NO in step S603), the control unit 120returns the processing to step S602.

If, in step S603, it is determined that an event has been received (YESin step S603), then in step S604, the data shaping unit 302 determineswhether the received event is an event concerning job informationtransmitted from the MFP 1100. Specifically, the data shaping unit 302determines whether the received event is a JobCompleted event based oninformation about the information column “event name” 401 illustrated inFIG. 4A and the information column “event name” 411 illustrated in FIG.4B. If it is determined that the received event is not an eventconcerning job information (NO in step S604), the data shaping unit 302advances the processing to step S606.

If, in step S604, it is determined that the received event is an eventconcerning job information (YES in step S604), then in step S605, thedata shaping unit 302 shapes data about the event and then stores theshaped data in the acquired data storage unit 303.

Next, in step S606, the control unit 120 determines whether the receivedevent is an event concerning device information transmitted from the MFP1100. Specifically, the control unit 120 determines whether the receivedevent is a BasicInfoSnapshotted event based on information about theinformation column “event name” 401 illustrated in FIG. 4A and theinformation column “event name” 411 illustrated in FIG. 4B. If it isdetermined that the received event is not an event concerning deviceinformation (NO in step S606), the control unit 120 advances theprocessing to step S608.

If, in step S606, it is determined that the received event is an eventconcerning device information (YES in step S606), then in step S607, thedata shaping unit 302 shapes data about the event and then stores theshaped data in the device information storage unit 304.

Additionally, in step S608, the control unit 120 determines whether thereceived event is an analysis timing event transmitted from the timercontrol unit 308. If it is determined that the received event is not ananalysis timing event (NO in step S608), the control unit 120 advancesthe processing to step S613. If, in step S608, it is determined that thereceived event is an analysis timing event (YES in step S608), the dataanalysis unit 305 specifies an MFP 1100 targeted for analysis.

Additionally, in step S609, the control unit 120 acquires, from thedevice information storage unit 304, information including the ratednumber of printed sheets and the rated number of scanned pages of theMFP 1100 targeted for analysis based on the device ID of the MFP 1100targeted for analysis.

Moreover, the data analysis unit 305 acquires, from the acquired datastorage unit 303, information including the number of printed sheets andthe number of printed pages based on the device ID of the MFP 1100targeted for analysis. Additionally, in step S610, the control unit 120obtains the total number of printed sheets and the total number ofscanned pages of the analysis target device in a specific time period.These total numbers are able to be obtained by adding together values inthe information column “number of printed sheets” 407 and addingtogether values in the information column “number of scanned pages” 409based on information in the information column “device ID” 402 and theinformation column “occurrence time” 403 illustrated in FIG. 4A, asmentioned above.

After that, in step S611, the data analysis unit 305 calculates a printoperation rate and a scan operation rate of the analysis target device.To perform these calculations, the rated number of printed sheets andthe rated number of scanned pages of the device acquired in step S609and the total number of printed sheets and the total number of scannedpages in a specific time period acquired in step S610 are used. Theprint operation rate is a rate representing to what extent the printerhas operated in a specific time period and is obtained in the followingway:Print operation rate=(Total number of printed sheets in specific timeperiod)/(Rated number of printed sheets per minute×Fraction in specifictime period).

If the specific time period (unit time period) is assumed to be onemonth, the print operation rate is expressed as follows:

Print operation rate=(Total number of printed sheets in onemonth)/(Rated number of printed sheets per minute×60 minutes×24hours×Number of days of one month),

and becomes almost the same as the operation rate in the Ministry of theEnvironment's guideline mentioned above as follows:Operation rate=(Monthly number of output sheets)/(Number of outputsheets per minute×60 minutes 7 hours×20 days).

Here, since the fraction in the specific time period becomes the samevalue with respect to any device, with regard to the purpose of making acomparison between devices, there is no problem even if 24 hours isassumed to be 7 hours, which is office's average working hours, and thenumber of days of one month is assumed to be 20 days. Therefore, theprint operation rate is considered to represent the same as theoperation rate in the Ministry of the Environment's guideline.

Moreover, in a case where the rated number of printed sheets (the numberof processable sheets) per minute differs between color print andmonochrome print, the print operation rate is obtained as follows:Print operation rate=(Number of color printed sheets in specific timeperiod)/(Rated number of color printed sheets per minute×Fraction inspecific time period)+(Number of monochrome printed sheets in specifictime period)/(Rated number of monochrome printed sheets perminute×Fraction in specific time period).

This print operation rate is able to be obtained based on dataillustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B.

Additionally, the operation status of a device equipped with a scanner,such as the MFP 1100, is not able to be correctly recognized only by theprint operation rate. Accordingly, a rate representing to what extentthe scanner has operated in a specific time period is obtained as a scanoperation rate in the following way:Scan operation rate=(Total number of scanned pages in specific timeperiod)/(Rated number of scanned pages per minute×Fraction in specifictime period).

If the specific time period is assumed to be one month, the scanoperation rate is expressed as follows:Scan operation rate=(Total number of scanned pages in one month)/(Ratednumber of scanned pages per minute×60 minutes×24 hours×Number of days ofone month).

Moreover, in a case where the rated number of scanned pages differsbetween color scan and monochrome scan, the scan operation rate isobtained as follows:Scan operation rate=(Number of color scanned pages in specific timeperiod)/(Rated number of color scanned pages per minute×Fraction inspecific time period)+(Number of monochrome scanned pages in specifictime period)/(Rated number of monochrome scanned pages perminute×Fraction in specific time period).

After that, the data analysis unit 305 stores the print operation rateand the scan operation rate obtained in this way as well as an ID foridentifying the analyzed device in the analysis data storage unit 306.

Additionally, in step S612, the data analysis unit 305 calculates theoperation rate of the MFP 1100 based on the print operation rate and thescan operation rate obtained in step S611. The operation rate of the MFP1100 is an operation rate of the overall MFP 1100 calculated inconsideration of operations of both the printer and scanner, and isobtained as follows:Operation rate of MFP 1100=(Print operation rate+Scan operation rate)/2.

This enables making a comparison between respective MFPs 1100 concerningto what extent the overall MFP 1100 is operating.

Additionally, the data analysis unit 305 obtains a print utilizationrate and a scan utilization rate (operation ratio information), whichrepresent at what rates (ratios) the MFP 1100 has utilized print andscan while being operating. The print utilization rate and the scanutilization rate are obtained in the following way:Print utilization rate=(Print operation rate)/(Print operation rate+Scanoperation rate),andScan utilization rate=(Scan operation rate)/(Print operation rate+Scanoperation rate).

The data analysis unit 305 stores the operation rate of the MFP 1100,the print utilization rate, and the scan utilization rate as well as anID for identifying the analyzed device in the analysis data storage unit306.

After that, in step S613, the data analysis unit 305 determines whetherthe aggregate calculation processing for operation rates itself hasended. Specifically, the data analysis unit 305 determines whether datafor data aggregate calculation and data for analysis intervals in theaggregated information storage unit 309 are in an ineffective state. Ifit is determined that the aggregate calculation processing itself hasended (YES in step S613), the control unit 120 ends a series ofprocessing. If it is determined that the aggregate calculationprocessing itself has not yet ended (NO in step S613), the control unit120 returns the processing to step S602.

<Operation Rates>

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of operation rate information which theserver 1120 displays. This is a display example in which the operationrates obtained by a series of processing illustrated in FIG. 6 aredisplayed on the operation display unit 128 of the server 1120. Insteadof displaying performed by the server 1120, operation rate data storedin the analysis data storage unit 306 can be transmitted to an externalinformation processing apparatus and be displayed there. Here,displaying of the operation rates is performed in tabular form. Theoperation rates and utilization rates of each MFP 1100 are displayed ineach row.

An information column “device ID” 701 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a device.

An information column 702 to an information column 706 represent, asindicated by the respective titles in the table, the print operationrate, the scan operation rate, the operation rate of the MFP 1100, theprint utilization rate, and the scan utilization rate. Conventionaloperation rates are almost the same values as those in the informationcolumn “print operation rate” 702 illustrated in FIG. 7 . In thisexample, the MFP 1100 of No. 2 is the highest in operation rate and theMFP 1100 of No. 3 is the lowest in operation rate. However, from theviewpoint of the information column “scan operation rate” 703, the MFP1100 of No. 3 is the highest in operation rate and the MFP 1100 of No. 2is the lowest in operation rate. Then, comparing values in theinformation column “MFP operation rate” 704, which represents theoperation rate of the overall MFP 1100, reveals that the MFP 1100 of No.3 is the highest in operation rate and the MFP 1100 of No. 1 is thelowest in operation rate.

<Remarks>

In the above-described way, it is possible to recognize the operationrate of the overall MFP 1100 obtained in consideration of both print andscan, which is conventionally not able to be found by the operation rateobtained in consideration of only print, and, thus, it is possible tocompare operation rates of the respective MFPs 1100. This enablescomparing the respective MFPs 1100 by higher-accuracy operation ratesconsistent with actual usages of the respective MFPs 1100, and thusenables providing a more excellent service when providing services suchas management and replacement of devices.

The above-described first exemplary embodiment is configured to obtainthe operation rate of the MFP 1100 in consideration of an operation ofthe printer and an operation of the scanner. A second exemplaryembodiment is configured to obtain the operation rate of the whole MFP1100 in consideration of not only execution operations for printing andscanning in the MFP 1100 but also an execution of a job in which theprinter and the scanner do not operate. The configuration of aninformation processing system according to the second exemplaryembodiment is similar to that in the first exemplary embodiment exceptfor components related to the above-mentioned characteristic portions.Therefore, similar components are assigned the respective same referencecharacters, and the detailed description thereof is omitted.

<Notification Events>

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating examples of notification events each ofwhich is transmitted from MFP 1100 to the server 1120 in the secondexemplary embodiment. While, as with FIGS. 4A and 4B, an actualnotification event is data which is transmitted in a format such as JSONor XML, here, for ease of explanation, the content of data is expressedin tabular form. Moreover, likewise, each row represents onenotification event.

An information column “event name” 801 to an information column “numberof scanned pages” 809 are similar to the information column “event name”401 to the information column “number of scanned pages” 409 illustratedin FIG. 4A. However, in the information column “job type” 805, jobswhich are not accompanied by printing or scanning in execution thereofare added.

A job type “FaxTrans” represents FAX transmission having been performed,a job type “ReceivBox” represents a box storage having been performed,and a job type “BoxSend” represents a box document transmission havingbeen performed. Moreover, a job type “ScanSend” represents a function oftransmitting a scanned document to another information processingapparatus via a network, and is made distinguishable from the boxdocument transmission.

A job which is not accompanied by printing or scanning and whichprocesses electronic image data, such as the FAX transmission, boxstorage, and box document transmission, is referred to as a “papernon-use job (predetermined image processing)” for explanatoryconvenience. Moreover, the rate at which the paper non-use job has beenexecuted in the MFP 1100 within a specific time period is referred to asa “paper non-use operation rate”.

An information column “processing execution time” 810 represents aprocessing execution time taken for actual processing in each job. Inthe case of a paper non-use job type, a processing execution time takentherefor is added to the information column “processing execution time”810. An additional method of adding a job start event and obtaining aprocessing execution time from a difference between the job start eventand a job end event can also be employed. However, here, a processingexecution time calculated by each function application, which is higherin accuracy than that calculated by the additional method, is acquiredfrom each function application or an execution history and is then addedto information about a job end event.

Event transmission processing which the MFP 1100 in the second exemplaryembodiment performs is almost the same as the processing illustrated inFIG. 5 , which the MFP 1100 in the first exemplary embodiment performs.However, in step S504 illustrated in FIG. 5 , a paper non-use job isadded to the type of a job which processes a job end event. In the caseof a paper non-use job, information about a processing execution time isacquired from the associated function application 207 or the historysetting holding unit 208 and is then added to a transmission event.

<Processing Flow of Server 1120>

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of processing which the server 1120 in the secondexemplary embodiment performs. Each step in the flowchart of FIG. 9 isprocessed by the CPU 121 executing a control program stored in the HDD124. Thus, each processing is performed by the control unit 120.

Processing in step S901 to step S911 in FIG. 9 is the same as executionprocessing illustrated in FIG. 6 , which the server 1120 in the firstexemplary embodiment performs, and, therefore, the description thereofis omitted here.

After calculating the print operation rate and the scan operation rateof the MFP 1100 targeted for analysis in step S911, then in step S912,the data analysis unit 305 obtains the sum of processing times of papernon-use jobs. Here, the data analysis unit 305 extracts informationabout the information column “processing execution time” 810 for papernon-use jobs illustrated in FIG. 8 from the acquired data storage unit303 based on the device ID of the MFP 1100 targeted for analysis. Then,the data analysis unit 305 obtains the sum of processing execution times(a total processing time) of the analysis target device in a specifictime period.

After that, in step S913, the data analysis unit 305 obtains a papernon-use operation rate from the sum of processing times of paper non-usejobs obtained in step S912. The data analysis unit 305 obtains the papernon-use operation rate in the following way:Paper non-use operation rate=(Sum of paper non-use job processing timesin specific time period)/(Hours in specific time period).

The data analysis unit 305 stores the obtained paper non-use operationrate, together with the ID for identifying the analysis target device,in the analysis data storage unit 306.

Additionally, in step S914, the data analysis unit 305 obtains anoperation rate of the MFP 1100, with processing for paper non-use jobstaken into consideration, from the print operation rate and scanoperation rate obtained in step S911 and the paper non-use operationrate obtained in step S913. Here, the data analysis unit 305 obtains theoperation rate of the MFP 1100 with printing, scanning, and papernon-use jobs taken into consideration in the following way:Operation rate of MFP 1100=(Print operation rate+Scan operationrate+Paper non-use operation rate)/3.

Moreover, in addition to a print utilization rate and a scan utilizationrate, the data analysis unit 305 obtains a paper non-use utilizationrate, which is the rate at which paper non-use jobs are utilized. Thedata analysis unit 305 obtains the print utilization rate, the scanutilization rate, and the paper non-use utilization rate in thefollowing way:Print utilization rate=(Print operation rate)/(Print operation rate+Scanoperation rate+Paper non-use operation rate),Scan utilization rate=(Scan operation rate)/(Print operation rate+Scanoperation rate+Paper non-use operation rate), andPaper non-use utilization rate=(Paper non-use operation rate)/(Printoperation rate+Scan operation rate+Paper non-use operation rate).

The data analysis unit 305 stores, in the analysis data storage unit306, the operation rate of the MFP 1100, the print utilization rate, thescan utilization rate, and the paper non-use utilization rate togetherwith the ID for identifying the analysis target device.

After that, the data analysis unit 305 performs processing in step S915and subsequent steps, which is the same as processing in step S613 andsubsequent steps illustrated in FIG. 6 and is, therefore, omitted fromdescription.

<Operation Rates>

FIG. 10 illustrate examples of operation rates which the server 1120 inthe second exemplary embodiment displays.

This is a display example in which the operation rates obtained by aseries of processing illustrated in FIG. 9 are displayed on theoperation display unit 128 of the server 1120. Here, displaying of theoperation rates is performed in tabular form as with the exampleillustrated in FIG. 7 .

In addition to the operation rates illustrated as an example in FIG. 7 ,an information column “paper non-use operation rate” 1004 and aninformation column “paper non-use utilization rate” 1008 areadditionally displayed. Moreover, an information column “MFP operationrate” 1005, which represents the operation rate of the MFP 1100, takes avalue with the paper non-use operation rate taken into consideration. Inthis example, it is found that the MFP 1100 of No. 2 is the highest inprint operation rate and the MFP 1100 of No. 3 is the lowest in scanoperation rate. However, it is found that the MFP 1100 of No. 1 is thehighest in paper non-use operation rate. Accordingly, it is presumedthat the MFP 1100 of No. 1 is a device which is less used for printingand scanning but has a high role as a reception server such as a FAXreception and transfer server.

<Remarks>

As described above, the second exemplary embodiment enables, even in anMFP 1100 in which processing not using a printer or a scanner isperformed, correctly reflecting an actual usage thereof in the operationrate of the MFP 1100. Accordingly, even in a case where there is an MFP1100 in which processing not using a printer or a scanner is performedin, for example, an office, it is possible to compare respective MFPs1100 based on high-accuracy operation rates associated with actualusages of the respective MFPs 1100. As a result, it is possible toincrease the convenience of management or replacement of devices.

<Notification Events>

FIGS. 11A, 11B, and 11C are diagrams schematically illustrating examplesof notification events each of which is transmitted from MFP 1100 to theserver 1120 in a third exemplary embodiment. Here, two types ofnotification events in the third exemplary embodiment among thenotification events which are transmitted from the MFP 1100 to theserver 1120 are described with reference to FIGS. 11A to 11C.

FIG. 11A illustrates examples of notification events which are recordedwhen various types of jobs have been completed in the MFP 1100 and aretransmitted to the server 1120. While an actual notification event isdata which is transmitted in a format such as JSON or XML, here, forease of explanation, the content of data is expressed in tabular form.Each row represents one notification event.

An information column “event name” 10401 represents the name of an eventwhich is transmitted. A “JobCompleted” event is an event indicating thecompletion of a job. This is one of events which are transmitted when atransmission request for information about a job has been received fromthe server 1120. While, actually, an event indicating the start of a jobis also transmitted, the description thereof is omitted here.

An information column “device ID” 10402 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a device such as the MFP 1100.

An information column “occurrence time” 10403 represents the time ofoccurrence of a phenomenon in the applicable event. In this case, thetime of occurrence is almost the same as the time of completion of a jobrepresented by the applicable event.

An information column “job ID” 10404 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a job in the same device.

Usually, the job ID is a numerical value which is incremented by one foreach execution of a job.

An information column “job type” 10405 represents the type of a job,such as copy, print, and send.

An information column “print color mode” 10406 represents with which ofcolor and monochrome printing has been performed in the case of a jobaccompanied by printing.

An information column “number of printed pages” 10407 represents thenumber of actually printed sheets (the number of processing operations),which is incremented in the case of a job accompanied by printing.

An information column “scan color mode” 10408 represents with which ofcolor and monochrome scanning has been performed in the case of a jobaccompanied by scanning.

An information column “number of scanned pages” 10409 represents thenumber of actually scanned pages, which is incremented in the case of ajob accompanied by scanning.

In this way, the information column 10402 to the information column10409 enable knowing information such as the number of printed pages andthe number of scanned pages concerning each job. For example, in theevent of No. 1, the notification event enables knowing the MFP 1100 hasexecuted a copy job, has read an original of two pages in color, and hasperformed printing in color on ten sheets of paper. While suchinformation added to each event includes, besides the information column10402 to the information column 10409, various pieces of informationabout a job, the description thereof is omitted here.

Data about the notification event illustrated in FIG. 11A iscommunicated by the job control unit 205 to the event collection unit209, is subjected to data shaping, and is then communicated to theserver 1120 via the event transmission unit 211. In the server 1120,upon receiving this event, the data shaping unit 302 discriminates theevent and then stores the event in the acquired data storage unit 303.Moreover, the data analysis unit 305 performs filtering of data storedin the acquired data storage unit 303 based on information in theinformation column “device ID” 10402, and further performs filtering ofonly jobs in a specific time period based on information in theinformation column “occurrence time” 10403. Adding the numbers ofprinted pages and the numbers of scanned pages together in the dataobtained by performing filtering enables obtaining the sum of numbers ofprinted pages and numbers of scanned pages in the specific time period.

FIG. 11B illustrates examples of notification events which areperiodically recorded concerning device information about the MFP 1100and are then transmitted to the server 1120. Again, while an actualnotification event is also data which is transmitted in a format such asJSON or XML, here, for ease of explanation, the content of data isexpressed in tabular form. Moreover, each row represents onenotification event. An information column “event name” 10411 representsthe name of an event which is transmitted.

A “BasicInfoSnapshotted” event is an event which is periodicallytransmitted about basic information about each device. This is one ofevents which are transmitted when a transmission request for informationconcerning device information about devices has been received from theserver 1120. While, actually, besides, an event indicating a change ofthe device information is also transmitted, the description thereof isomitted here.

An information column “device ID” 10412 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a device such as the MFP 1100. An information column“occurrence time” 10413 represents the time of occurrence of aphenomenon in the applicable event. In this case, the time of occurrenceis the time at which the device information was internally acquired,which occurs periodically.

An information column “printer type” 10414 represents the type of aprinter included in a device such as the MFP 1100, and indicates one ofa color printer and a monochrome printer. An information column “ratednumber of color printed pages” 10415 represents the rated number ofcolor printed pages which are able to be output per minute in a casewhere the printer is a color printer. An information column “ratednumber of monochrome printed pages” 10416 represents the rated number ofmonochrome printed pages which are able to be output per minute by theprinter. An information column “scanner type” 10417 represents the typeof a scanner in a case where the device includes the scanner, andindicates one of a color scanner and a monochrome scanner.

An information column “rated number of color scanned pages” 10418represents the rated number of color scanned pages which are able to beread per minute by a color scanner in a case where the device includesthe color scanner. An information column “rated number of monochromescanned pages” 10419 represents the rated number of monochrome scannedpages which are able to be read per minute by a scanner in a case wherethe device includes the scanner. In this way, the information column10412 to the information column 10419 of this event enable knowinginformation such as the rated number of printed pages and the ratednumber of scanned pages concerning a device such as the MFP 1100. Whilesuch information added to each event includes, besides the informationcolumn 10412 to the information column 10419, various pieces ofinformation about a device, the description thereof is omitted here.

With regard to data about notification events illustrated in FIG. 11B,one of the function applications 207 periodically acquires deviceinformation at a previously designated time interval and communicatesthe acquired device information to the event collection unit 209. Theevent collection unit 209 transmits this notification event to theserver 1120 via the event transmission unit 211. In the server 1120,upon receiving this event, the data shaping unit 302 discriminates theevent and then stores the event in the device information storage unit304. Moreover, the data analysis unit 305 performs filtering of datastored in the device information storage unit 304 based on informationin the information column “device ID” 10412. Then, the data analysisunit 305 acquires the latest information based on information in theinformation column “occurrence time” 10413, thus acquiring the latestinformation about the device.

FIG. 11C illustrates examples of notification events which are recordedat the time of a change in state of the device such as the MFP 1100 andare transmitted to the server 1120. Again, while an actual notificationevent is data which is transmitted in a format such as JSON or XML,here, for ease of explanation, the content of data is expressed intabular form. Moreover, each row represents one notification event. Aninformation column “event name” 10421 represents the name of an eventwhich is transmitted. A “StatusChanged” event is an event indicating achange in state of the device. This is one of events which aretransmitted when a transmission request for information about a changein state of the device has been received from the server 1120. While,actually, an event indicating a change in state of the device is alsotransmitted, the description thereof is omitted here. An informationcolumn “device ID” 10422 represents an ID for uniquely identifying adevice such as the MFP 1100. An information column “occurrence time”10423 represents the time of occurrence of a phenomenon in theapplicable event. An information column “status” 10424 represents astate indicating whether the MFP 1100 is currently able to operate.“Standby” indicates a printing enabled state, “Malfunction” indicates amalfunction, “PrinterJam” indicates a jam in the printer, and “NoToner”indicates no toner in the printer, thus indicating a printing disabledstate.

Data about the notification event illustrated in FIG. 11C iscommunicated by the history setting holding unit 208 to the eventcollection unit 209, is subjected to data shaping, and is thencommunicated to the server 1120 via the event transmission unit 211. Inthe server 1120, upon receiving this event, the data shaping unit 302discriminates the event and then stores the event in the acquired datastorage unit 303. Moreover, the data analysis unit 305 performsfiltering of data stored in the acquired data storage unit 303 based oninformation in the information column “device ID” 10422, and furtherperforms filtering of only jobs in a specific time period based oninformation in the information column “occurrence time” 10423. In thisway, it is possible to calculate a cumulative time in a printing enabledstate within the specific time period from the filtered data.

<Processing Flow of MFP 1100>

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating event processing which the MFP 1100performs in the third exemplary embodiment.

Each step in the flowchart of FIG. 12 is processed by the CPU 101executing a control program stored in the HDD 104. Thus, each processingis performed by the controller unit 100. Here, transmission processingfor a notification event which the MFP 1100 performs is described indetail, and the reception of a notification event request from theserver 1120 and the setting thereof are omitted from description.

First, in step S10501, the event collection unit 209 waits for receptionof an internal event from an internal function module.

Next, in step S10502, the event collection unit 209 determines whetheran internal event for a transmission processing target has been receivedfrom an internal function module. Specifically, the event collectionunit 209 determines, based on information about a transmission targetevent stored in the notification setting holding unit 203, whether thereceived event is an internal event corresponding to the transmissiontarget event. If it is determined that the internal event has not beenreceived (NO in step S10502), the controller unit 100 returns theprocessing to step S10501.

If, in step S10502, it is determined that an internal event for atransmission processing target has been received from an internalfunction module (YES in step S10502), then in step S10503, the eventcollection unit 209 determines whether the received internal event is ajob ending event. If it is determined that the received internal eventis not a job ending event (NO in step S10503), the controller unit 100advances the processing to step S10505.

If, in step S10503, it is determined that the received internal event isa job ending event (YES in step S10503), then in step S10504, thecontroller unit 100 acquires information about a job and generates atransmission event. Specifically, the controller unit 100 acquiresinformation equivalent to the information column of a JobCompleted eventillustrated in FIG. 11A from, for example, an information column about ajob added to the internal event or information stored in the historysetting holding unit 208. Additionally, the controller unit 100 shapesthe acquired information into a data format of the JobCompleted event,and stores the generated JobCompleted event as a file in the messagebuffer 210. Here, the event collection unit 209 previously stores asetting as to an ending event of what job type to generate as atransmission event. Alternatively, a method of receiving a designationof a job type from the server 1120, storing such information in thenotification setting holding unit 203, and generating a transmissionevent of the designated job type based on such information can beemployed.

Next, in step S10505, the event collection unit 209 determines whetherthe received internal event is a timing event for device informationtransmission. If it is determined that the received internal event isnot a timing event for device information transmission (NO in stepS10505), the controller unit 100 advances the processing to step S10507.

If, in step S10505, it is determined that the received internal event isa timing event for device information transmission (YES in step S0505),then in step S10506, the controller unit 100 acquires information abouta device and a generates a transmission event. Specifically, thecontroller unit 100 acquires information equivalent to the informationcolumn of a BasicInfoSnapshotted event illustrated in FIG. 11B from, forexample, the function applications 207 or the history setting holdingunit 208. Additionally, the controller unit 100 shapes the acquiredinformation into a data format of the BasicInfoSnapshotted event, andstores the generated BasicInfoSnapshotted event as a file in the messagebuffer 210.

If, in step S10507, it is determined that the received internal event isan event for device state change (YES in step S10507), then in stepS10508, the controller unit 100 acquires information about a devicestate change and generates a transmission event. Specifically, thecontroller unit 100 acquires information equivalent to the informationcolumn of a StatusChanged event illustrated in FIG. 11C from, forexample, an information column related to a device state change added tothe internal event or information stored in the history setting holdingunit 208. Additionally, the controller unit 100 shapes the acquiredinformation into a data format of the StatusChanged event, and storesthe generated StatusChanged event as a tile in the message buffer 210.Here, the event collection unit 209 previously stores a setting as to anevent of what state change to generate as a transmission event.Alternatively, a method of receiving a designation of a state changeevent from the server 1120, storing such information in the notificationsetting holding unit 203, and generating a transmission event of thedesignated device state change based on such information can beemployed.

Next, in step S10509, the event transmission unit 211 transmits thetransmission event stored in the message buffer 210 to the server 1120via the network communication unit 201.

After that, in step S10510, the event collection unit 209 determineswhether the event transmission processing itself to the server 1120 hasended. Specifically, the event collection unit 209 determines whetherthere is a transmission target event in the notification setting holdingunit 203. In a case where there is no transmission target event in thenotification setting holding unit 203, the event collection unit 209determines that the event transmission processing itself has ended (YESin step S10510), and then ends a series of processing. In a case wherethere is a transmission target event, the event collection unit 209determines that the event transmission processing is still continuing(NO in step S10510), and the controller unit 100 then returns theprocessing to step S10501.

In this way, transmission events such as those illustrated in FIGS. 11A,11B, and 11C are communicated from the MFP 1100 to the server 1120.

<Processing Flow of Server 1120>

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating processing which the server 1120performs in the third exemplary embodiment. Each step in the flowchartof FIG. 13 is processed by the CPU 121 executing a control programstored in the HDD 124. Thus, each processing is performed by the controlunit 120. Here, reception of an event and analysis processing of datawhich the server 1120 performs are described in detail.

First, in step S10601, the data analysis unit 305 instructs theaggregated information storage unit 309 to acquire data about intervalsof data aggregate calculation and analysis and instructs the timercontrol unit 308 to communicate analysis timing at every such interval.Additionally, the notification data generation unit 310 generates, fromanalysis target data information stored in the aggregated informationstorage unit 309, an event notification request to the MFP 1100, andtransmits the event notification request to the MFP 1100 via the networkcommunication unit 301.

Next, in step S10602, the data shaping unit 302 and the data analysisunit 305 wait for reception of a transmission event from the MFP 1100and reception of an analysis timing event from the timer control unit308.

Additionally, in step S10603, the control unit 120 determines whetherthe transmission event from the MFP 1100 or the analysis timing eventfrom the timer control unit 308 has been received. If it is determinedthat no event has been received (NO in step S10603), the control unit120 returns the processing to step S10602.

If, in step S10603, it is determined that an event has been received(YES in step S10603), then in step S10604, the data shaping unit 302determines whether the received event is an event concerning jobinformation transmitted from the MFP 1100. Specifically, the datashaping unit 302 determines whether the received event is a JobCompletedevent based on information about the information column “event name”10401 illustrated in FIG. 11A, the information column “event name” 10411illustrated in FIG. 11B, and the information column “event name” 10421illustrated in FIG. 11C. If it is determined that the received event isnot an event concerning job information (NO in step S10604), the controlunit 120 advances the processing to step S10606.

If, in step S10604, it is determined that the received event is an eventconcerning job information (YES in step S10604), then in step S10605,the data shaping unit 302 shapes data about the event and then storesthe shaped data in the acquired data storage unit 303.

Next, in step S10606, the control unit 120 determines whether thereceived event is an event concerning device information transmittedfrom the MFP 1100. Specifically, the control unit 120 determines whetherthe received event is a BasicInfoSnapshotted event based on informationabout the information column “event name” 10401 illustrated in FIG. 11A,the information column “event name” 10411 illustrated in FIG. 11B, andthe information column “event name” 10421 illustrated in FIG. 11C. If itis determined that the received event is not an event concerning deviceinformation (NO in step S10606), the control unit 120 advances theprocessing to step S10608.

If, in step S10606, it is determined that the received event is an eventconcerning device information (YES in step S10606), then in step S10607,the data shaping unit 302 shapes data about the event and then storesthe shaped data in the device information storage unit 304.

Next, in step S10608, the control unit 120 determines whether thereceived event is an event concerning a device state change transmittedfrom the MFP 1100. Specifically, the control unit 120 determines whetherthe received event is a StatusChanged event based on information aboutthe information column “event name” 10401 illustrated in FIG. 11A, theinformation column “event name” 10411 illustrated in FIG. 11B, and theinformation column “event name” 10421 illustrated in FIG. 11C. If it isdetermined that the received event is not an event concerning a devicestate change (NO in step S10608), the control unit 120 advances theprocessing to step S10610.

If, in step S10608, it is determined that the received event is an eventconcerning a device state change (YES in step S10608), then in stepS10609, the data shaping unit 302 shapes data about the event and thenstores the shaped data in the device information storage unit 304.

Additionally, in step S10610, the control unit 120 determines whetherthe received event is an analysis timing event transmitted from thetimer control unit 308. If it is determined that the received event isnot an analysis timing event (NO in step S10610), the control unit 120advances the processing to step S10615. If, in step S10610, it isdetermined that the received event is an analysis timing event (YES instep S10610), the data analysis unit 305 specifies an MFP 1100 targetedfor analysis.

Additionally, in step S10611, the control unit 120 acquires, from thedevice information storage unit 304, information about the rated numberof printed pages of the MFP 1100 targeted for analysis based on thedevice ID of the MFP 1100 targeted for analysis.

Moreover, the data analysis unit 305 acquires, from the acquired datastorage unit 303, information about the number of printed pages based onthe device ID of the MFP 1100 targeted for analysis. Additionally, instep S10612, the control unit 120 obtains the total number of printedpages of the analysis target device in a specific time period. Thistotal number is able to be obtained by adding together values in theinformation column “number of printed pages” 10407 based on informationin the information column “device ID” 10402 and the information column“occurrence time” 10403 illustrated in FIG. 11A, as mentioned above.

In step S10613, the data analysis unit 305 aggregates effectiveoperation times (effective time period information) of the analysistarget device.

The data analysis unit 305 acquires a state change of the device fromthe acquired data storage unit 303 based on the device ID of the MFP1100 targeted for analysis. Additionally, in step S10613, the controlunit 120 obtains a cumulative time in which the MFP 1100 targeted foranalysis is able to execute a job in a specific time period.Specifically, the control unit 120 obtains the cumulative time by addingtogether time periods in which the MFP 1100 was able to operate (timeperiods for Standby) based on a status history such as information aboutthe information column “device ID” 10422, the information column“occurrence time” 10423, and the information column “status” 10424illustrated in FIG. 11C mentioned above. The method of aggregatingeffective operation times can include subtracting, from the specifictime period, the sum of times in which the printing disabled state, suchas “PrinterJam” or “Malfunction” illustrated in FIG. 11C, wascontinuing.

After that, in step S10614, the data analysis unit 305 calculates anoperation rate of the analysis target device. To perform thesecalculations, the rated number of printed pages acquired in step S10611,the total number of printed pages in a specific time period acquired instep S10612, and the effective operation time obtained by aggregatecalculation in step S10613 are used. The printer effective operationrate is a rate representing to what extent the printer has operated in aspecific time period and is obtained in the following way:Printer effective operation rate=(Number of printed pages in specifictime period)/(Rated number of printed pages per minute×Effectiveoperation time (minutes) in specific time period).

If the specific time period is assumed to be one month, the printereffective operation rate is expressed as follows:Printer effective operation rate=(Number of printed pages in onemonth)/(Rated number of printed pages per minute×Effective operationtime (minutes) in one month).

While the printer effective operation rate becomes almost the same asthe operation rate in the Ministry of the Environment's guidelinementioned above as follows: Operation rate=(Monthly number of outputsheets)/(Number of output sheets per minute×60 minutes×7 hours×20 days),since, instead of the operation time in one month in the denominatorbeing 60 minutes×7 hours×20 days, the operation rate is calculated basedon the effective operation time with the downtime of the MFP 1100 takeninto account, it is possible to accurately make a comparison ofoperation rates of the respective MFPs 1100.

Moreover, in a case where the rated number of printed pages (apredetermined number) per minute (per unit time) differs between colorprint and monochrome print, the printer effective operation rate isobtained in the following way:Printer effective operation rate=(Number of color printed pages inspecific time period)/(Rated number of color printed pages perminute×Effective operation time (minutes) in specific timeperiod)+(Number of monochrome printed pages in specific timeperiod)/(Rated number of monochrome printed pages per minute×Effectiveoperation time (minutes) in specific time period).

Additionally, the data analysis unit 305 calculates the rate of theeffective operation time to the specific time period by the followingequation:Printer effective time rate=(Effective operation time (minutes) inspecific time period)/(Specific time period (minutes)).

After that, in step S10614, the data analysis unit 305 stores theprinter effective operation rate and the printer effective time rateobtained in the above-described way as well as an ID for identifying theanalyzed device in the analysis data storage unit 306.

After that, in step S10615, the data analysis unit 305 determineswhether the aggregate calculation processing for operation rates itselfhas ended. Specifically, the data analysis unit 305 determines whetherdata for data aggregate calculation and data for analysis intervals inthe aggregated information storage unit 309 are in an ineffective state.If it is determined that the aggregate calculation processing itself hasended (YES in step S10615), the control unit 120 ends a series ofprocessing. If it is determined that the aggregate calculationprocessing itself has not yet ended (NO in step S10615), the controlunit 120 returns the processing to step S10602.

<Operation Rates>

FIG. 14 illustrates an example of operation rate information which theserver 1120 displays. This is a display example in which the effectiveoperation rates and the effective time rates obtained by a series ofprocessing illustrated in FIG. 13 are displayed on the operation displayunit 128 of the server 1120. Instead of displaying performed by theserver 1120, operation rate data stored in the analysis data storageunit 306 can be transmitted to an external information processingapparatus and be displayed there. Here, displaying of the operationrates is performed in tabular form. The operation rates and utilizationrates of each MFP 1100 are displayed in each row.

An information column “device ID” 10701 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a device. An information column 10702 and an informationcolumn 10703 represent, as indicated by the respective titles in thetable, the printer effective operation rate and the printer effectivetime rate.

In an MFP of the device ID “BBB0100” illustrated in FIG. 14 , theeffective time rate being 50%, i.e., one half, indicates that one halfof the aggregate calculation time period was a time period in a printingdisabled state due to, for example, a malfunction. In a conventionalmethod of calculating the operation rate with a fixed time taken as thedenominator, it may have been erroneously determined that the MFP of thedevice ID “BBB0100” was lower in operation rate than an MFP of thedevice ID “CCC0200”, which was fully operational. In the presentexemplary embodiment, calculating the effective operation rate with thedowntime of the MFP 1100 taken into account as in the calculation of theeffective operation time in step S10614 enables making an appropriatecomparison of operation rates of the respective MFPs 1100.

The above-described third exemplary embodiment is configured to obtainthe effective operation rate with the downtime taken into account withrespect to a printing operation. A fourth exemplary embodiment isconfigured to obtain the operation rate of the whole MFP 1100 inconsideration of not only a printing operation in the MFP 1100 but alsoan execution of a job in which the scanner operates. The configurationof an information processing system according to the fourth exemplaryembodiment is similar to that in the third exemplary embodiment exceptfor components related to the above-mentioned characteristic portions.Therefore, similar components are assigned the respective same referencecharacters, and the detailed description thereof is omitted.

<Notification Events>

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating examples of notification events eachof which is transmitted from MFP 1100 to the server 1120 in the fourthexemplary embodiment. While, as with FIG. 11C, an actual notificationevent is data which is transmitted in a format such as JSON or XML,here, for ease of explanation, the content of data is expressed intabular form. Moreover, likewise, each row represents one notificationevent.

An information column “event name” 10801, an information column “deviceID” 10802, and an information column “occurrence time” 10803 are similarto those illustrated in FIG. 11C.

An information column “unit” 10804 represents the type of a unit, suchas the printer 113 or the scanner 112, which is a component of the MFP1100.

In a case where the information column “unit” 10804 indicates “Printer”,a state change in the printer 113 is shown, and, in a case where theinformation column “unit” 10804 indicates “Scanner”, a state change inthe scanner 112 is shown. An information column “status” 10805, which issimilar to that illustrated in FIG. 11C, additionally includes, in FIG.15 , “ScannerJam”, which indicates a state concerning “Scanner”. Forexample, with regard to a StatusChanged event of No. 4 in FIG. 15 , thefollowing is found. Thus, in an MFP 1100 in which the information column“device ID” 10802 indicates “AAA0001”, the information column “status”10805 indicates “Malfunction”, i.e., the MFP 1100 being malfunctioning.

Moreover, in a StatusChanged event of No. 10 illustrated in FIG. 15 ,the information column “status” 10805 of the canner 112 of an MFP 1100indicated by “CCC0200” of the information column “device ID” 10802indicates “ScannerJam”, i.e., a jam occurring in the scanner 112. In theMFP 1100 in the present exemplary embodiment, the scanner 112 and theprinter 113 are able to operate independent from each other, so that,for example, even when the printer 113 is malfunctioning, a jobrequiring the use of the scanner 112 is executable. In eachStatusChanged event illustrated in FIG. 15 , it is possible to acquireinformation indicating whether each unit, such as the printer 113 or thescanner 112, which is a component of the MFP 1100, was in an operablestate.

While event transmission processing which the MFP 1100 performs in thefourth exemplary embodiment is almost the same as the processing in theMFP 1100 in the third exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIG. 12 , theabove-mentioned information column “unit” 10804 is added as device statechange acquisition in step S10508 illustrated in FIG. 12 .

<Processing Flow of Server 1120>

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating processing which the server 1120performs in the fourth exemplary embodiment. Each step in the flowchartof FIG. 16 is processed by the CPU 121 executing a control programstored in the HDD 124.

Processing in step S10901 to step S10910 illustrated in FIG. 16 is thesame as the execution processing performed by the server 1120 in thethird exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIG. 13 , and, therefore, thedescription thereof is omitted.

If, in step S10910, it is determined that the received event is ananalysis timing event (YES in step S10910), the data analysis unit 305specifies an MFP 1100 targeted for analysis. Additionally, in stepS10911, the control unit 120 acquires, from the device informationstorage unit 304, information about the rated number of printed pagesand the rated number of scanned pages of the MFP 1100 targeted foranalysis based on the information column “device ID” 10412 of the MFP1100 targeted for analysis.

Next, the data analysis unit 305 acquires, from the acquired datastorage unit 303, information about the information column “number ofprinted pages” 10407 and the information column “number of scannedpages” 10409 based on the device ID of the MFP 1100 targeted foranalysis. Additionally, in step S10912, the control unit 120 obtains therespective cumulative numbers of pages from the numbers of printed pagesand the numbers of scanned pages of the analysis target device in aspecific time period. Specifically, the control unit 120 is able toobtain the respective cumulative numbers of pages by adding togethervalues of the information column “number of printed pages” 10407 andadding together values of the information column “number of scannedpages” 10409 based on information about the information column “deviceID” 10402 and the information column “occurrence time” 10403.

In step S10913, the data analysis unit 305 calculates effectiveoperation times of the MFP 1100 targeted for analysis.

While the method of calculating the effective operation times is thesame as that in step S10613, the data analysis unit 305 calculates ascanner effective operation time and a printer effective operation timeby adding together times in which the respective units, i.e., thescanner 112 and the printer 113, were able to operate based oninformation about the information column “unit” 10804 illustrated inFIG. 15 .

In step S10914, the data analysis unit 305 calculates and stores aprinter effective time rate and a printer effective operation rate. Themethod of calculation is the same as that for calculating an effectiveoperation rate and an effective time rate in step S10614 except for theuse of the printer effective operation time for the printer 113calculated in step S10913, and, therefore, the description thereof isomitted.

In step S10915, the data analysis unit 305 calculates and stores ascanner effective time rate and a scanner effective operation rate.

First, the data analysis unit 305 performs calculations using thefollowing formulae based on the rated number of scanned pages acquiredin step S10911, the cumulative number of scanned pages in the specifictime period obtained in step S10912, and the scanner effective operationtime calculated in step S10913:

In the case of the rated number of scanned pages being the same betweencolor and monochrome,Scanner effective operation rate=(Number of scanned pages in specifictime period)/(Rated number of scanned pages per minute×Scanner effectiveoperation time (minutes) in specific time period).In the case of the rated number of scanned pages being different betweencolor and monochrome,Scanner effective operation rate=(Number of color scanned pages inspecific time period)/(Rated number of color scanned pages perminute×Scanner effective operation time (minutes) in specific timeperiod)+(Number of monochrome scanned pages in specific timeperiod)/(Rated number of monochrome scanned pages per minute×Scannereffective operation time (minutes) in specific time period).

Additionally, the data analysis unit 305 calculates the rate of theeffective operation time to the specific time period by the followingequation:Scanner effective time rate=(Scanner effective operation time (minutes)in specific time period)/(Specific time period (minutes)).

Additionally, the data analysis unit 305 stores the scanner effectiveoperation rate and the scanner effective time rate calculated in theabove-described way as well as an ID for identifying the device targetedfor analysis in the analysis data storage unit 306.

In step S10916, the data analysis unit 305 sums the printer effectivetime rate and the scanner effective time rate calculated in step S10914and step S10915 to obtain an MFP effective time rate and stores the MFPeffective time rate as well as an ID for identifying the device targetedfor analysis in the analysis data storage unit 306.

Additionally, the data analysis unit 305 averages the scanner effectiveoperation rate and the printer effective operation rate to obtain an MFPeffective operation rate and stores the MFP effective operation rate aswell as an ID for identifying the device targeted for analysis in theanalysis data storage unit 306. After that, the data analysis unit 305performs processing in step S10917 and subsequent steps, which is thesame as processing in step S10615 and subsequent steps illustrated inFIG. 13 and is, therefore, omitted from description.

<Operation Rates>

FIG. 17 illustrate examples of operation rates which the server 1120 inthe fourth exemplary embodiment displays.

This is a display example in which the effective operation rates and theeffective time rates obtained by a series of processing illustrated inFIG. 16 are displayed on the operation display unit 128 of the server1120. Here, displaying of the effective operation rates and theeffective time rates is performed in tabular form as with the exampleillustrated in FIG. 14 .

An information column “printer effective operation rate” 11002 and aninformation column “printer effective time rate” 11003 are similar tothose illustrated in FIG. 14 as an example. In FIG. 17 , in addition tothese, an information column “scanner operation rate” 11004, aninformation column “scanner effective time rate” 11005, an informationcolumn “MFP effective operation rate” 11006, and an information column“MFP effective time rate” 11007 are additionally displayed.

In FIG. 17 , for example, in the case of comparing operation rates foronly printers, the MFP of No. 3 is long in the downtime of the printerand is low in the printer effective operation rate. However, it is foundthat the MFP of No. 3 is high in the operation rate of the scanner andis higher in the scanner effective operation rate and the MFP effectiveoperation rate than the MFP of No. 1.

<Remarks>

In the above-described way, in the fourth exemplary embodiment, it ispossible to calculate operation rates with a situation in which theprinter or the scanner is not able to be used due to, for example, amalfunction thereof taken into account. This enables comparing therespective MFPs 1100 by higher-accuracy operation rates consistent withactual usages of the respective MFPs 1100. As a result, it is possibleto increase the convenience of a service such as management andreplacement of devices.

<Notification Events>

FIGS. 18A and 18B are diagrams schematically illustrating example ofnotification events which are transmitted from the MFP 1100 to theserver 1120 in a fifth exemplary embodiment. Here, two types ofnotification events related to the fifth exemplary embodiment among thenotification events which are transmitted from the MFP 1100 to theserver 1120 are described with reference to FIGS. 18A and 18B.

FIG. 18A illustrates examples of notification events which are recordedwhen various types of jobs have been completed in the MFP 1100 and aretransmitted to the server 1120. While an actual notification event isdata which is transmitted in a format such as JSON or XML, here, forease of explanation, the content of data is expressed in tabular form.Each row represents one notification event.

An information column “event name” 20401 represents the name of an eventwhich is transmitted. A “JobCompleted” event is an event indicating thecompletion of a job. This is one of events which are transmitted when atransmission request for information about a job has been received fromthe server 1120. While, actually, an event indicating the start of a jobis also transmitted, the description thereof is omitted here.

An information column “device ID” 20402 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a device such as the MFP 1100.

An information column “occurrence time” 20403 represents the time ofoccurrence of a phenomenon in the applicable event. In this case, thetime of occurrence is almost the same as the time of completion of a jobrepresented by the applicable event.

An information column “job ID” 20404 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a job in the same device. Usually, the job ID is a numericalvalue which is incremented by one for each execution of a job.

An information column “job type” 20405 represents the type of a job,such as copy and print.

An information column “print color mode” 20406 represents with which ofcolor and monochrome printing has been performed in the case of a jobaccompanied by printing.

An information column “number of printed sheets” 20407 represents thenumber of actually printed sheets (the number of processing operationsperformed for print processing), which is incremented in the case of ajob accompanied by printing.

An information column “print speed” 20408 represents a print speedactually used for printing, as the number of sheets which are able to beoutput (processable) per minute, in the case of a job accompanied byprinting. As mentioned above, the print speed used for printing differsdepending on the size or type of paper actually used for printing.Therefore, the event collection unit 209 acquires information about aprint speed used for the applicable job from the function application207 used for printing or the history setting holding unit 208 with jobinformation recorded thereon, and adds the acquired information to theinformation column “print speed” 20408.

FIG. 18B illustrates examples of notification events which areperiodically recorded concerning device information about the MFP 1100and are then transmitted to the server 1120. Again, while an actualnotification event is also data which is transmitted in a format such asJSON or XML, here, for ease of explanation, the content of data isexpressed in tabular form. Moreover, each row represents onenotification event.

An information column “event name” 20411 represents the name of an eventwhich is transmitted. A “BasicInfoSnapshotted” event is an event whichis periodically transmitted about basic information about each device.This is one of events which are transmitted when a transmission requestfor information concerning device information about devices has beenreceived from the server 1120. While, actually, besides, an eventindicating a change of the device information is also transmitted, thedescription thereof is omitted here.

An information column “device ID” 20412 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a device such as the MFP 1100.

An information column “occurrence time” 20413 represents the time ofoccurrence of a phenomenon in the applicable event. In this case, thetime of occurrence is the time at which the device information wasinternally acquired, which occurs periodically.

An information column “printer type” 20414 represents the type of aprinter included in a device such as the MFP 1100, and indicates one ofa color printer and a monochrome printer.

An information column “rated number of color printed sheets” 20415represents the rated number of color printed sheets which are able to beoutput per minute in a case where the printer is a color printer.

An information column “rated number of monochrome printed sheets” 20416represents the rated number of monochrome printed sheets which are ableto be output per minute by the printer. In this way, the informationcolumn 20412 to the information column 20416 of this event enableknowing information such as the rated number of printed sheetsconcerning a device such as the MFP 1100. While such information addedto each event includes, besides the information column 20412 to theinformation column 20416, various pieces of information about a device,the description thereof is omitted here.

With regard to data about notification events illustrated in FIG. 18B,one of the function applications 207 periodically acquires deviceinformation at a previously designated time interval and communicatesthe acquired device information to the event collection unit 209. Theevent collection unit 209 transmits this notification event to theserver 1120 via the event transmission unit 211. In the server 1120,upon receiving this event, the data shaping unit 302 discriminates theevent and then stores the event in the device information storage unit304. Moreover, the data analysis unit 305 performs filtering of datastored in the device information storage unit 304 based on informationin the information column “device ID” 20412. Then, the data analysisunit 305 acquires the latest information based on information in theinformation column “occurrence time” 20413, thus acquiring the latestinformation about the device.

<Processing Flow of MFP 1100>

As illustrated in FIG. 5 , first, in step S501, the event collectionunit 209 waits for reception of an internal event from an internalfunction module.

Next, in step S502, the event collection unit 209 determines whether aninternal event for a transmission processing target has been receivedfrom an internal function module. Specifically, the event collectionunit 209 determines, based on information about a transmission targetevent stored in the notification setting holding unit 203, whether thereceived event is an internal event corresponding to the transmissiontarget event. If it is determined that the internal event has not beenreceived (NO in step S502), the controller unit 100 returns theprocessing to step S501.

If, in step S502, it is determined that an internal event for atransmission processing target has been received from an internalfunction module (YES in step S502), then in step S503, the eventcollection unit 209 determines whether the received internal event is ajob ending event. If it is determined that the received internal eventis not a job ending event (NO in step S503), the controller unit 100advances the processing to step S505.

If, in step S503, it is determined that the received internal event is ajob ending event (YES in step S503), then in step S504, the controllerunit 100 acquires information about a job and generates a transmissionevent. Specifically, the controller unit 100 acquires informationequivalent to the information column of a JobCompleted event illustratedin FIG. 18A from, for example, an information column about a job addedto the internal event or information stored in the history settingholding unit 208. At this time, in the case of a job accompanied byprinting, the controller unit 100 acquires information about theinformation column “print color mode” 20406, the information column“number of printed sheets” 20407, and the information column “printspeed” 20408 such as those illustrated in FIG. 18A. Additionally, thecontroller unit 100 shapes the acquired information into a data formatof the JobCompleted event, and stores the generated JobCompleted eventas a file in the message buffer 210. Here, the event collection unit 209previously stores a setting as to an ending event of what job type togenerate as a transmission event. Alternatively, a method of receiving adesignation of a job type from the server 1120, storing such informationin the notification setting holding unit 203, and generating atransmission event of the designated job type based on such informationcan be employed.

Next, in step S505, the event collection unit 209 determines whether thereceived internal event is a timing event for device informationtransmission. If it is determined that the received internal event isnot a timing event for device information transmission (NO in stepS505), the controller unit 100 advances the processing to step S507.

If, in step S505, it is determined that the received internal event is atiming event for device information transmission (YES in step S505),then in step S506, the controller unit 100 acquires information about adevice and generates a transmission event. Specifically, the controllerunit 100 acquires information equivalent to the information column of aBasicInfoSnapshotted event illustrated in FIG. 18B from, for example,the function applications 207 or the history setting holding unit 208.Additionally, the controller unit 100 shapes the acquired informationinto a data format of the BasicInfoSnapshotted event, and stores thegenerated BasicInfoSnapshotted event as a file in the message buffer210.

Next, in step S507, the event transmission unit 211 transmits thetransmission event stored in the message buffer 210 to the server 1120via the network communication unit 201.

After that, in step S508, the event collection unit 209 determineswhether the event transmission processing itself to the server 1120 hasended. Specifically, the event collection unit 209 determines whetherthere is a transmission target event in the notification setting holdingunit 203. In a case where there is no transmission target event in thenotification setting holding unit 203, the event collection unit 209determines that the event transmission processing itself has ended (YESin step S508), and then ends a series of processing. In a case wherethere is a transmission target event, the event collection unit 209determines that the event transmission processing is still continuing(NO in step S508), and the controller unit 100 then returns theprocessing to step S501.

In this way, transmission events such as those illustrated in FIGS. 18Aand 18B are communicated from the MFP 1100 to the server 1120.

<Processing Flow of Server 1120>

FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustrating processing which the server 1120performs in the fifth exemplary embodiment. Each step in the flowchartof FIG. 19 is processed by the CPU 121 executing a control programstored in the HDD 124. Thus, each processing is performed by the controlunit 120. Here, reception of an event and analysis processing of datawhich the server 1120 performs are described in detail.

First, in step S20601, the data analysis unit 305 instructs theaggregated information storage unit 309 to acquire data about intervalsof data aggregate calculation and analysis and instructs the timercontrol unit 308 to communicate analysis timing at every such interval.Additionally, the notification data generation unit 310 generates, fromanalysis target data information stored in the aggregated informationstorage unit 309, an event notification request to the MFP 1100, andtransmits the event notification request to the MFP 1100 via the networkcommunication unit 301.

Next, in step S20602, the data shaping unit 302 and the data analysisunit 305 wait for reception of a transmission event from the MFP 1100and reception of an analysis timing event from the timer control unit308.

Additionally, in step S20603, the control unit 120 determines whetherthe transmission event from the MFP 1100 or the analysis timing eventfrom the timer control unit 308 has been received. If it is determinedthat no event has been received (NO in step S20603), the control unit120 returns the processing to step S20602.

If, in step S20603, it is determined that an event has been received(YES in step S20603), then in step S20604, the data shaping unit 302determines whether the received event is an event concerning jobinformation transmitted from the MFP 1100. Specifically, the datashaping unit 302 determines whether the received event is a JobCompletedevent based on information about the information column “event name”20401 illustrated in FIG. 18A and the information column “event name”20411 illustrated in FIG. 18B. If it is determined that the receivedevent is not an event concerning job information (NO in step S20604),the control unit 120 advances the processing to step S20606.

If, in step S20604, it is determined that the received event is an eventconcerning job information (YES in step S20604), then in step S20605,the data shaping unit 302 shapes data about the event and then storesthe shaped data in the acquired data storage unit 303.

Next, in step S20606, the control unit 120 determines whether thereceived event is an event concerning device information transmittedfrom the MFP 1100. Specifically, the control unit 120 determines whetherthe received event is a BasicInfoSnapshotted event based on informationabout the information column “event name” 20401 illustrated in FIG. 18Aand the information column “event name” 20411 illustrated in FIG. 18B.If it is determined that the received event is not an event concerningdevice information (NO in step S20606), the control unit 120 advancesthe processing to step S20608.

If, in step S20606, it is determined that the received event is an eventconcerning device information (YES in step S20606), then in step S20607,the data shaping unit 302 shapes data about the event and then storesthe shaped data in the device information storage unit 304.

Additionally, in step S20608, the control unit 120 determines whetherthe received event is an analysis timing event transmitted from thetimer control unit 308. If it is determined that the received event isnot an analysis timing event (NO in step S20608), the control unit 120advances the processing to step S20614. If, in step S20608, it isdetermined that the received event is an analysis timing event (YES instep S20608), the data analysis unit 305 specifies an MFP 1100 targetedfor analysis.

Additionally, in step S20609, the control unit 120 acquires, from thedevice information storage unit 304, information about the rated numberof printed sheets of the MFP 1100 targeted for analysis based on thedevice ID of the MFP 1100 targeted for analysis.

Moreover, in step S20610, the data analysis unit 305 acquires, from theacquired data storage unit 303, information about the number of printedsheets and the print speed of each job executed in a specific timeperiod based on the device ID of the MFP 1100 targeted for analysis.

Additionally, in step S20611, the control unit 120 obtains a joboperation rate for each of all of the jobs executed in the specific timeperiod. The control unit 120 obtains the job operation rate based on thenumber of printed sheets and the print speed of each job acquired instep S20610 in the following way:Job operation rate=(Number of printed sheets in job)/(Number of printedsheets per minute in job×Fraction in specific time period).Here, the number of printed sheets per minute (unit time) and the printspeed are synonymous with each other.

If the specific time period is assumed to be a month (one month), thejob operation rate becomes as follows:Job operation rate=(Number of printed sheets in job)/(Number of printedsheets per minute in job×60 minutes×24 hours×Number of days in onemonth).

Here, since the fraction in the specific time period becomes the samevalue with respect to any device, with regard to the purpose of making acomparison between devices, there is no problem even if 24 hours isassumed to be 7 hours, which is office's average working hours, and thenumber of days of one month is assumed to be 20 days.

After obtaining a job operation rate for each of all of the jobsexecuted in the specific time period, next, in step S20612, the controlunit 120 obtains an operation rate of the analysis target device in thespecific time period. The control unit 120 obtains the device operationrate based on the job operation rate for each job obtained in stepS20611 in the following way:operation rate=Σ_(job) ^(all jobs in specific time period)Job operationrate.

Thus, the device operation rate is obtained by summing the job operationrates for all of the jobs in the specific time period. The data analysisunit 305 stores the thus-obtained operation rate as well as an ID foridentifying the analyzed device in the analysis data storage unit 306.

Moreover, in step S20613, the control unit 120 obtains a rated outputrate indicating to what extent printing has been performed with therated number of printed sheets in jobs in the specific time period.

Specifically, the control unit 120 first obtains a rated operation ratebased on information about the rated number of printed sheets acquiredin step S20609, and then obtains the rated output rate based on theoperation rate obtained in step S20612 in the following way:Rated operation rate=(Total number of printed sheets in specific timeperiod)/(Rated number of printed sheets per minute×Fraction in specifictime period), andRated output rate=(Rated operation rate)/(Operation rate).

If the specific time period is assumed to be one month and is furtherassumed to be 60 minutes×7 hours×20 days, which is office's averageworking hours, the rated operation rate becomes almost the same as theoperation rate in the Ministry of the Environment's guideline mentionedabove as follows:Operation rate=(Monthly number of output sheets)/(Number of outputsheets per minute×60 minutes×7 hours×20 days).Thus, the rated output rate is a ratio indicating how the ratedoperation rate deviates from such a conventional operation rate, andserves as a rough indication as to how printing was performed with apaper size, paper type, and print setting different from the standardones. Since, usually, in the case of printing using a special paper sizeor paper type, the number of printable sheets becomes smaller than therated number of printed sheets, as the rated output rate becomessmaller, the rate at which printing using, for example, a special papersize was performed becomes larger.

The data analysis unit 305 stores the thus-obtained rated output rate aswell as an ID for identifying the analyzed device in the analysis datastorage unit 306.

After that, in step S20614, the data analysis unit 305 determineswhether the aggregate calculation processing for operation rates itselfhas ended. Specifically, the data analysis unit 305 determines whetherdata for data aggregate calculation and data for analysis intervals inthe aggregated information storage unit 309 are in an ineffective state.If it is determined that the aggregate calculation processing itself hasended (YES in step S20614), the control unit 120 ends a series ofprocessing. If it is determined that the aggregate calculationprocessing itself has not yet ended (NO in step S20614), the controlunit 120 returns the processing to step S20602.

<Operation Information>

FIG. 20 illustrates an example of operation information which the server1120 displays. This is a display example in which the operation ratesand the rated output rates obtained by a series of processingillustrated in FIG. 19 are displayed on the operation display unit 128of the server 1120. Instead of displaying performed by the server 1120,data about, for example, operation rates stored in the analysis datastorage unit 306 can be transmitted to an external informationprocessing apparatus and be displayed there. Here, displaying of theoperation information is performed in tabular form. The operation rateand rated output rate of each MFP 1100 are displayed in each row.

An information column “device ID” 20701 represents an ID for uniquelyidentifying a device.

An information column 20702 to an information column 20707 represent, asindicated by the respective titles in the table, the number of colorprinted sheets, the number of monochrome printed sheets, the rated umberof color printed sheets, the rated number of monochrome printed sheets,an operation rate, and a rated output rate, respectively.

Moreover, although not being actually displayed, for ease ofexplanation, an information column “rated operation rate” 20708 isillustrated. The information column “rated operation rate” 20708represents the same operation rates as those in the Ministry of theEnvironment's guideline mentioned above, and can be mentioned asconventional operation rates. Here, the information column “operationrate” 20706, the information column “rated output rate” 20707, and theinformation column “rated operation rate” 20708 represent valuesobtained by performing calculations with the specific time period set asone month and the fraction in the specific time period set as 60minutes×7 hours×20 days in conformity with the Ministry of theEnvironment's guideline.

Additionally, the device of No. 2 is assumed to be a device in which allof the jobs were executed with the rated number of printed sheets.

The device of No. 1 is assumed to be a device in which, in jobs whichoutput one half of the number of monochrome printed sheets, printing wasperformed at a speed corresponding to one half of the rated number ofprinted sheets. The device of No. 3 is assumed to be a device in which,in all of the jobs, printing was performed with use of, for example, apaper size different from the standard size and at a speed correspondingto one half of the rated number of printed sheets.

In such a case, in comparison with regard to the information column“rated operation rate” 20708, i.e., conventional operation rates, theoperation rate of the device of No. 2 is the highest, and a differencebetween the operation rate of the device of No. 2 and the operation rateof the device of No. 3 is large. However, in comparison with regard tothe information column “operation rate” 20706 in the present exemplaryembodiment, the operation rate of the device of No. 1 is the highest,and a difference between the operation rate of the device of No. 2 andthe operation rate of the device of No. 3 is not so large. This isbecause the operation rate in the present exemplary embodiment is avalue obtained in consideration of the actual print speed, and theinformation column “operation rate” 20706 correctly represents a rate atwhich the printer actually operated.

Moreover, viewing the information column “rated output rate” 20707reveals that the device of No. 1 and the device of No. 3 performed muchprinting with settings different from the standard ones. This becomes ahelp in considering how the printer is used by the user, when theprinter or the MFP 1100 is to be replaced or rearranged, by examiningthe setting content of the printer in more detail.

<Remarks>

In the above-described way, it is possible to recognize the operationrate of the printer or the MFP 1100 obtained in consideration of theprint speed for each job, which is conventionally not able to be foundby the operation rate obtained in consideration of only the standardprint, and, thus, it is possible to compare operation rates of therespective printers or MFPs 1100. This enables comparing the respectiveprinters or MFPs 1100 by higher-accuracy operation rates consistent withactual usages of the respective printers or MFPs 1100, and thus enablesincreasing the convenience for providing services such as management andreplacement of devices.

The above-described fifth exemplary embodiment is configured to obtainrespective operation rates with respect to a plurality of types of printprocessing differing in print speed of the MFP 1100. A sixth exemplaryembodiment is configured to also obtain an operation rate of the printerin consideration of a case where the print speed has changed in themiddle of a job for performing printing. The configuration of aninformation processing system according to the sixth exemplaryembodiment is similar to that in the fifth exemplary embodiment exceptfor components related to the above-mentioned characteristic portions.Therefore, similar components are assigned the respective same referencecharacters, and the detailed description thereof is omitted.

<Notification Events>

FIG. 21 is a diagram schematically illustrating examples of notificationevents each of which is transmitted from MFP 1100 to the server 1120 inthe sixth exemplary embodiment. While, as with FIGS. 18A and 18B, anactual notification event is data which is transmitted in a format suchas JSON or XML, here, for ease of explanation, the content of data isexpressed in tabular form. Moreover, likewise, each row represents onenotification event.

Information about an information column “event name” 20801 to aninformation column “print speed” 20808 is similar to information aboutthe information column “event name” 20401 to the information column“print speed” 20408 illustrated in FIG. 18A.

Additionally, information about an information column “second printcolor mode” 20809, an information column “number of second printedsheets” 20810, and an information column “second print speed” 20811 isadded. These information columns are the same in meaning as theinformation column “print color mode” 20806, the information column“number of printed sheets” 20807, and the information column “printspeed” 20808. Thus, a plurality of pieces of print information is addedto one piece of job information. Mainly, in a print job using, forexample, a page description language (PDL), it is possible to perform adesignation of printing, such as changing of a paper size or changing ofa print setting value, in the middle of a job. In a case where thesechanges of settings are accompanied by changing of a print speed,printing is performed at a plurality of print speeds even in a singlejob, so that a difference occurs between the operation rate obtained bycalculation and the actual print operation state. Therefore, in a casewhere, in a job accompanied by printing, the print speed has beenchanged in the middle of a job, information about the print color mode,the number of printed sheets, and the print speed obtained at the timeof this change is added as the information column 20809 to theinformation column 20811.

For example, in a job corresponding to a JobCompleted event of No. 3, itis found that a print job was executed to output two color printedsheets at a print speed of 60 sheets per minute and two color printedsheets at a print speed of 30 sheets per minute. Furthermore, in a casewhere the print speed has been changed three or more times in the middleof a job accompanied by printing, information about the third orsubsequent print color mode, the number of third or subsequent printedsheets, and the third or subsequent print speed is added, but an exampleof such a case is omitted from description.

<Processing Flow of Server 1120>

FIG. 22 is a flowchart of processing which the server 1120 in the sixthexemplary embodiment performs. Each step in the flowchart of FIG. 22 isprocessed by the CPU 121 executing a control program stored in the HDD124.

Processing in step S20901 to step S20910 in FIG. 22 is the same asexecution processing in step S20601 to step S20610 illustrated in FIG.19 , which the server 1120 in the fifth exemplary embodiment performs,and, therefore, the description thereof is omitted here.

In step S20911, the data analysis unit 305 calculates an operation ratein each of cases where printing was performed at different speeds forrespective jobs in a specific time period, based on the job informationacquired in step S20910. In a case where, in a single job, a pluralityof print processing operations differing in print speed has beenperformed, each print processing operation is referred to as a “process”for convenience of explanation, the print speed in the process isreferred to as a “process speed”, and the operation rate in the processis referred to as a “process operation rate”. The data analysis unit 305obtains the process operation rate in a given job in the following way:Process operation rate=(Number of printed sheets in process)/(Number ofprinted sheets per minute in process×Fraction in specific time period).Here, the number of printed sheets per minute in process and the processspeed are synonymous with each other.

Additionally, in step S20912, the data analysis unit 305 obtains a joboperation rate based on the process operation rate. Specifically, thedata analysis unit 305 obtains the job operation rate based on theprocess operation rate obtained in step S20911 in the following way:Job operation rate=Σ_(process) ^(all processes in job)Process operationrate.

In this way, the job operation rate in the sixth exemplary embodiment isobtained by summing the process operation rates in the applicable job.

Processing for calculating and storing the operation rate and the ratedoutput rate in step S20913 and subsequent steps, which is performedafter the operation rate for each job is obtained in step S20912, is thesame as the processing in step S20612 and subsequent steps in the fifthexemplary embodiment illustrated in FIG. 19 , and, therefore, thedescription thereof is omitted.

<Operation Information>

FIG. 23 illustrates an example of operation information which the server1120 displays in the sixth exemplary embodiment.

Display items including an information column “device ID” 21001 to aninformation column “rated output rate” 21007 are the same as theinformation column 20701 to the information column 20707 illustrated inFIG. 20 . Moreover, although not being actually displayed, for ease ofexplanation, an information column “rated operation rate” 21008 is alsoillustrated.

In a device of No. 1 to a device of No. 3, the number of color printedsheets and the number of monochrome printed sheets in a specific timeperiod are the same as those illustrated in FIG. 20 , and the fractionin the specific time period for use in operation rate calculation isalso the same. Additionally, in the device of No. 1 and the device ofNo. 2, the print condition remains the same as that described withreference to FIG. 20 , and both the operation rate and the rated outputrate are the same as those illustrated in FIG. 20 .

In the device of No. 3 illustrated in FIG. 20 , a condition in which allof the jobs were executed at one half of the rated print speed is set.On the other hand, in the device of No. 3 illustrated in FIG. 23 , acondition in which jobs which output one half of all of the printedsheets were executed at one half of the rated print speed is set.Additionally, a condition in which the remaining half of jobs wereexecuted with printing at one half of the rated print speed and printingat one fourth of the rated print speed outputting the same number ofprinted sheets is set. Thus, in terms of processes, a process whichoutput three fourths of all of the number of printed sheets in thespecific time period operated at a process speed which was one half ofthe rated print speed, and a process which output one fourth of all ofthe number of printed sheets in the specific time period operated at aprocess speed which was one fourth of the rated print speed.

In this case, although the information column “number of color printedsheets” 21002, the information column “number of monochrome printedsheets” 21003, and the information column “rated operation rate” 21008,which indicates conventional operation rates, are unchanged, theinformation column “operation rate” 21006 of the device of No. 3 becomesthe highest. Moreover, it is found that the information column “ratedoutput rate” 21007 of the device of No. 3 becomes lower than thatillustrated in FIG. 20 . The device of No. 3 performed a large number ofprint processing operations low in process speed, so that, although thenumber of printed sheets output thereby is unchanged, the rate at whichthe device of No. 3 operated becomes high.

In the above-described way, in the sixth exemplary embodiment, even in acase where print processing operations were performed at respectivedifferent process speeds in respective jobs accompanied by printing, itis possible to correctly reflect the actual usage at that time in eachoperation rate. Accordingly, even in a case where there is a printerwhich executes a large number of print jobs in each of which a pluralityof paper sizes or a plurality of print settings is used, it is possibleto compare printers or MFPs 1100 based on high-accuracy operation ratesconsistent with the actual usage of each printer or MFP 1100. As aresult, it is possible to increase the convenience for management andreplacement of devices.

<Remarks>

As described above, in the sixth exemplary embodiment, even in an MFP1100 in which processing not using a printer or a scanner is performed,it is possible to correctly reflecting the actual usage thereof in theoperation rate of the MFP 1100. Accordingly, even in a case where thereis an MFP 1100 in which processing not using a printer or a scanner isperformed, it is possible to compare MFPs 1100 based on high-accuracyoperation rates consistent with the actual usage of each MFP 1100. As aresult, it is possible to increase the convenience for providingservices such as management and replacement of devices.

Other Embodiments

The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described exemplaryembodiments, but can be modified in various fashions (including anorganic combination of some exemplary embodiments) based on the gist ofthe present disclosure and is not construed to exclude suchmodifications from the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, all of theconfigurations obtained by combining some of the above-describedexemplary embodiments and their modification examples are also includedin the present disclosure.

Embodiment(s) of the present disclosure can also be realized by acomputer of a system or apparatus that reads out and executes computerexecutable instructions (e.g., one or more programs) recorded on astorage medium (which may also be referred to more fully as a‘non-transitory computer-readable storage medium’) to perform thefunctions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s) and/orthat includes one or more circuits (e.g., application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC)) for performing the functions of one or moreof the above-described embodiment(s), and by a method performed by thecomputer of the system or apparatus by, for example, reading out andexecuting the computer executable instructions from the storage mediumto perform the functions of one or more of the above-describedembodiment(s) and/or controlling the one or more circuits to perform thefunctions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s). Thecomputer may comprise one or more processors (e.g., central processingunit (CPU), micro processing unit (MPU)) and may include a network ofseparate computers or separate processors to read out and execute thecomputer executable instructions. The computer executable instructionsmay be provided to the computer, for example, from a network or thestorage medium. The storage medium may include, for example, one or moreof a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM),a storage of distributed computing systems, an optical disk (such as acompact disc (CD), digital versatile disc (DVD), or Blu-ray Disc (BD)™),a flash memory device, a memory card, and the like.

Moreover, the present disclosure can be applied to a system including aplurality of devices and can be applied to an apparatus including asingle device. For example, a part of software modules can be configuredto be executed by an external server, and functions thereof can beimplemented by acquiring a result of processing performed by theexternal server. For example, while, in the first and second exemplaryembodiments, calculation of operation rates is performed by the server1120, a system configuration in which such calculation is completed inthe MFP 1100, i.e., a configuration in which the MFP 1100 performscalculation of operation rates, can be employed. Moreover, while aconfiguration in which a result of calculation of operation rates isdisplayed on the operation display unit 128 of the server 1120 isdescribed as an example, a configuration in which such a result isdisplayed on the operation unit 111 of the MFP 1100 can be employed.

While the present disclosure has been described with reference toexemplary embodiments, the scope of the following claims are to beaccorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all suchmodifications and equivalent structures and functions.

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Applications No.2020-197066 filed Nov. 27, 2020, No. 2020-197068 filed Nov. 27, 2020,No. 2020-197069 filed Nov. 27, 2020, and No. 2021-142928 filed Sep. 2,2021, which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in theirentirety.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing system comprising: areading device configured to perform reading processing for reading anoriginal; and one or more controllers configured to function as: anacquisition unit that acquires a number of processing operations perunit time period of the reading processing; and an acquisition unit thatacquires operation rate information about the reading device based onthe number of processing operations per unit time period of the readingprocessing and a predetermined number of processing operations of thereading processing.
 2. The information processing system according toclaim 1, further comprising an image forming device configured toperform image forming processing for forming an image on a sheet,wherein the one or more controllers are configured to further functionas: an acquisition unit that acquires a number of processing operationsper unit time period of the image forming processing; and an acquisitionunit that acquires operation rate information about the image formingdevice based on the number of processing operations per unit time periodof the image forming processing and a predetermined number of processingoperations of the image forming processing.
 3. The informationprocessing system according to claim 2, wherein the reading device andthe image forming device are provided in one image processing apparatus,and wherein the one or more controllers acquire operation rateinformation about the image processing apparatus based on the operationrate information about the image forming device and the operation rateinformation about the reading device.
 4. The information processingsystem according to claim 3, wherein the one or more controllers acquireoperation ratio information about the image forming device obtainedduring operation of the image processing apparatus based on theoperation rate information about the image forming device and theoperation rate information about the reading device.
 5. The informationprocessing system according to claim 3, wherein the one or morecontrollers acquire operation ratio information about the reading deviceobtained during operation of the image processing apparatus based on theoperation rate information about the image forming device and theoperation rate information about the reading device.
 6. The informationprocessing system according to claim 3, wherein the image processingapparatus is capable of performing predetermined image processing whichdoes not use the image forming device and the reading device, andwherein the one or more controllers acquire operation rate informationabout the predetermined image processing performed by the imageprocessing apparatus based on a total processing time per unit timeperiod of the predetermined image processing and a predeterminedprocessing time of the predetermined image processing.
 7. Theinformation processing system according to claim 6, wherein thepredetermined image processing is at least one of processing forreceiving a facsimile and transferring image data of the facsimile to anexternal apparatus, processing for storing image data received from afacsimile apparatus or an external apparatus, and processing fortransmitting stored image data to an external apparatus.
 8. Theinformation processing system according to claim 6, wherein the one ormore controllers acquire operation ratio information about thepredetermined image processing obtained during operation of the imageprocessing apparatus based on the operation rate information about theimage forming device, the operation rate information about the readingdevice, and the operation rate information about the predetermined imageprocessing.
 9. The information processing system according to claim 3,wherein the information processing system further comprises aninformation processing apparatus capable of communicating with the imageprocessing apparatus, wherein the image processing apparatus includes:an acquisition unit that counts a number of processing operations of thereading processing; and an acquisition unit that counts a number ofprocessing operations of the image forming processing, and wherein theinformation processing apparatus includes: an acquisition unit thatacquires a number of processing operations per unit time period of thereading processing based on information obtained by the image processingapparatus performing counting; an acquisition unit that acquires anumber of processing operations per unit time period of the imageforming processing based on information obtained by the image processingapparatus performing counting; an acquisition unit that acquiresoperation rate information about the reading device; and an acquisitionunit that acquires operation rate information about the image formingdevice.
 10. The information processing system according to claim 1,wherein the number of processing operations per unit time period of thereading processing is a number of processing operations per month of thereading processing.
 11. The information processing system according toclaim 1, wherein a number of processing operations per unit time periodof the image forming processing is a number of processing operations permonth of the image forming processing.
 12. The information processingsystem according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined number ofprocessing operations of the reading processing is a number ofprocessing operations that is based on a number of processing operationswhich the reading device is able to perform per minute.
 13. Theinformation processing system according to claim 1, wherein thepredetermined number of processing operations of a image formingprocessing is a number of processing operations that is based on anumber of processing operations which the image forming device is ableto perform per minute.
 14. The information processing system accordingto claim 1, further comprising a device configured to communicateoperation rate information about the reading device to a user.
 15. Theinformation processing system according to claim 1, further comprising adevice configured to communicate operation rate information about aimage forming device to a user.
 16. The information processing systemaccording to claim 1, further comprising a device configured tocommunicate operation rate information about a image processingapparatus to a user.
 17. An information processing apparatus comprising:one or more controllers configured to function as: an acquisition unitthat acquires, from an image processing apparatus, a number ofprocessing operations per unit time period of reading processing for anoriginal performed by a reading device of the image processingapparatus; and an acquisition unit that acquires operation rateinformation about the reading device based on the number of processingoperations per unit time period of the reading processing and apredetermined number of processing operations of the reading processing.18. An information processing system comprising: an image forming deviceconfigured to form an image on a sheet, the image forming device beingable to perform a predetermined number of image forming processingoperations per unit time; and one or more controllers configured tofunction as: an acquisition unit that acquires a status history of theimage forming device; an acquisition unit that acquires a number ofprocessing operations performed in a specific time period by the imageforming processing; an acquisition unit that acquires effective timeperiod information in the specific time period based on the statushistory; and an acquisition unit that acquires an effective operationrate of the image forming device based on the number of processingoperations performed in the specific time period by the image formingprocessing, the predetermined number, and the effective time periodinformation.
 19. An information processing system comprising: an imageforming device configured to form an image on a sheet, the image formingdevice being able to perform first image forming processing and secondimage forming processing which differ in a number of processingoperations able to be performed per unit time; and one or morecontrollers configured to function as: an acquisition unit that acquiresa number of processing operations of the first image forming processingand a number of processing operations of the second image formingprocessing; and an acquisition unit that acquires a first operation ratebased on a number of processing operations performed in a specific timeperiod of the first image forming processing and a predetermined numberof processing operations of the first image forming processing andacquires a second operation rate based on a number of processingoperations performed in the specific time period of the second imageforming processing and a predetermined number of processing operationsof the second image forming processing.